monsoon
the seasonal wind of the Indian Ocean and southern Asia, blowing from the southwest in summer and from the northeast in winter.
(in India and nearby lands) the season during which the southwest monsoon blows, commonly marked by heavy rains; rainy season.
any wind that changes directions with the seasons.
any persistent wind established between water and adjoining land.
Origin of monsoon
1Other words from monsoon
- mon·soon·al, adjective
Words Nearby monsoon
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use monsoon in a sentence
This can occur during hurricanes along the East Coast or monsoons in the Southwest, but climate change makes it possible even during a regular rainstorm.
Tennessee floods show a pressing climate danger across America: ‘Walls of water’ | Sarah Kaplan | August 24, 2021 | Washington PostIn a regional quirk, the aerosols emitted by South Asia—particles from emissions, or stirred-up dust—are thought to have had the opposite effect over the second half of the 20th century, drying out the monsoon and triggering droughts.
The IPCC report predicts that South Asia will swing from droughts to floods | Samanth Subramanian | August 9, 2021 | QuartzThe Western Samoan government required villages to build cement schools because their former palm-thatch construction could not withstand the frequent monsoons.
The delayed monsoons can have an implication on the sowing of the Kharif monsoon crop and thereby crop output.
Will the monsoon wash away some of India’s economic woes? | Niharika Sharma | July 26, 2021 | QuartzIt’s that time of year again in the US—hurricane and monsoon season is upon us.
Get reliable, portable, and powerful emergency supply energy for your home | Quinn Gawronski | July 21, 2021 | Popular-Science
monsoon rains sparked widespread flooding that submerged the camp in water.
The monsoon season that year saw six tiger attacks, despite the normal rarity of such incidents in that season.
How Climate Change Is Causing Chaos in the Animal Kingdom | Nina Strochlic | January 23, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBy Sunday, the shifting winds of a monsoon storm drove the flames toward the town.
Inside the Yarnell, Arizona, Fire: How It Happened, and the Questions Still Unanswered | Christine Pelisek, Terry Greene Sterling | July 2, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTThe Bangkok metro continued to operate even as a foot of water lapped at the entrances during the 2011 monsoon.
Hurricane Sandy’s Lesson for Flood-Proofing a Subway | Josh Dzieza | November 4, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTNeither heat nor the threat of monsoon-like rains keeps activists from their placards.
Amnesty International’s Pussy Riot Concert: Balaclavas and Punk Rockers | Robin Givhan | August 13, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTUndoubtedly the best time to try and climb the mountain would be before the monsoon breaks in May or early June.
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921 | Charles Kenneth Howard-BuryWithout consulting the meteorologist at Simla it is difficult to accept assertions about the monsoon as ultimate truth.
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921 | Charles Kenneth Howard-BuryHuge breakers, urged on by the southeast monsoon, boil over these rocks from one year's end to the next.
The Argus Pheasant | John Charles BeechamI suppose this break may be taken as the forerunner of the monsoon on Mount Everest.
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921 | Charles Kenneth Howard-BuryWill the whole of the snow fallen during the monsoon of 1921 have melted before the next monsoon, and if so by what date?
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921 | Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury
British Dictionary definitions for monsoon
/ (mɒnˈsuːn) /
a seasonal wind of S Asia that blows from the southwest in summer, bringing heavy rains, and from the northeast in winter
the rainy season when the SW monsoon blows, from about April to October
any wind that changes direction with the seasons
Origin of monsoon
1Derived forms of monsoon
- monsoonal, adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for monsoon
[ mŏn-sōōn′ ]
A system of winds that influences the climate of a large area and that reverses direction with the seasons. Monsoons are caused primarily by the much greater annual variation in temperature over large areas of land than over large areas of adjacent ocean water. This variation causes an excess of atmospheric pressure over the continents in the winter, and a deficit in the summer. The disparity causes strong winds to blow between the ocean and the land, bringing heavy seasonal rainfall.
In southern Asia, a wind that is part of such a system and that blows from the southwest in the summer and usually brings heavy rains.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for monsoon
A wind system that affects large climatic regions and reverses direction seasonally.
Notes for monsoon
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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