dust devil

American  

[duhst dev-uhl] / ˈdʌst ˌdɛv əl /

noun

Meteorology.

1. a well-developed dust whirl with a diameter of about 10–100 feet (3–30 meters), rotating either clockwise or counterclockwise, common in dry regions on hot, calm afternoons and made visible by the dust, debris, and sand it picks up from the ground: dust devils on average are about 660 feet (200 meters) tall, but some have exceeded a height of 3,280 feet (1 kilometer).

   We noticed the base of the dust devil following a direct path along the ground, but its uppermost portion was meandering wildly.

---

dust devil British  

noun

1. a strong miniature whirlwind that whips up dust, litter, leaves, etc into the air

---

Etymology

Origin of dust devil

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

The dust devil came and went over Perseverance quickly last year, thus the short length of the audio, said the University of Toulouse’s Naomi Murdoch, lead author of the study appearing in Nature Communications.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 13, 2022

A dust devil is a bit like a miniature storm cell.

From Washington Post • Dec. 13, 2022

There is a tiny chance that a dust devil might blow off the dust covering InSight’s solar panels and prolong the mission’s life.

From Scientific American • Oct. 28, 2022

A dust devil has been spotted in a field following a wildfire in County Durham.

From BBC • Aug. 12, 2022

A dust devil twirled eastward from the sage across the flat deserted fields, catching tumbleweeds, bouncing them along and letting them go, weaving among the crumbled houses and rusty car hulks—a truly desolate scene.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols

Related Words

• sandstorm