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seiche

[ seysh ]
/ seɪʃ /
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noun
an occasional and sudden oscillation of the water of a lake, bay, estuary, etc., producing fluctuations in the water level and caused by wind, earthquakes, changes in barometric pressure, etc.
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Origin of seiche

Borrowed into English from Franco-Provençal around 1830–40
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use seiche in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for seiche

seiche
/ (seɪʃ) /

noun
a periodic oscillation of the surface of an enclosed or semienclosed body of water (lake, inland sea, bay, etc) caused by such phenomena as atmospheric pressure changes, winds, tidal currents, and earthquakes

Word Origin for seiche

C19: from Swiss French, first used to describe the rise and fall of water in Lake Geneva; of obscure origin
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 seiche

seiche
[ sāsh, sēch ]

An oscillating wave in an enclosed body of water. A seiche may have a period from a few minutes to a few hours and is usually a result of seismic or atmospheric disturbances.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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