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nuée ardente

[ French ny-ey ar-dahnt ]
/ French nü eɪ arˈdɑ̃t /

noun, plural nu·ées ar·dentes [French ny-ey zar-dahnt] /French nü eɪ zarˈdɑ̃t/. Geology.

(in a volcanic eruption) a swiftly flowing, dense cloud of hot gases, ashes, and lava fragments.

Nearby words

  1. nux vomica,
  2. nuxalk,
  3. nuyorican,
  4. nuyts land,
  5. nuzzle,
  6. nv,
  7. nvcjd,
  8. nvq,
  9. nw,
  10. nwbn

Origin of nuée ardente

1900–05; < French: literally, burning cloud
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for nuee ardente

nuée ardente

/ (ˈnyeɪ ɑːˈdɑ̃t) /

noun

a rapidly moving turbulent incandescent cloud of gas, ash, and rock fragments flowing close to the ground after violent ejection from a volcanoSee also ignimbrite

Word Origin for nuée ardente

C20: from French, literally: burning cloud
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
Science definitions for nuee ardente

nuée ardente

[ nōō-ā′ ăr-däɴt′ ]

Plural nuées ardentes (nōō-āz′ ăr-däɴt′)

A fast moving gaseous cloud of hot ashes and other material thrown out from an erupting volcano. Nuées ardentes are often incandescent.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.