La Niña
Americannoun
noun
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A cooling of the surface water of the eastern and central Pacific Ocean, occurring somewhat less frequently than El Niño events but causing similar, generally opposite disruptions to global weather patterns. La Niña conditions occur when the Pacific trade winds blow more strongly than usual, pushing the sun-warmed surface water farther west and increasing the upwelling of cold water in the eastern regions. Together with the atmospheric effects of the related southern oscillation, the cooler water brings drought to western South America and heavy rains to eastern Australia and Indonesia.
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Compare El Niño
Etymology
Origin of La Niña
First recorded in 1985–90; from Spanish: literally, “the female child”; patterned after El Niño ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Hoell and his colleagues analyzed nearly four decades of El Niño and La Niña oscillations and wildfire burn areas to understand how often the fire season mirrors the climate cycle.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
During La Niña, warmer waters remain farther west, strengthening monsoon rains across parts of South and Southeast Asia.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 3, 2026
El Niño and La Niña often alternate, but sometimes we can have two of the same event back to back.
From BBC ● Jun. 9, 2026
As it turns out, El Niño and La Niña aren’t the only players in determining how much rain and snow fall over Southern California.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026
Had any one been there to watch him, they would have noticed that his countenance assumed a strange and troubled expression every time his eyes chanced to wander in the direction of La Niña.
From The White Chief A Legend of Northern Mexico by L. Evans
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
