seiche
[ seysh ]
/ seɪʃ /
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.
Nearby words
segway, sehna knot, sei, sei whale, seicento, seiche, seidel, seidlitz powder, seidlitz powders, seif, seif dune
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. 2019
Examples from the Web for seiche
A seiche is a standing oscillation of a lake, usually in the direction of the longest diameter, but occasionally transverse.
Notwithstanding the strange, not to say grotesque, appearance of its beak, the Seiche is decidedly an interesting creature.
The Sea|Jules MicheletCenéle amus: salanaig buale ⁊ buicc brodnai ⁊ eóin erchoille ⁊ seiche corad.
The Triads of Ireland|Kuno MeyerThe Vilaine receives the Meu and the Seiche, which are both navigable.
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
Science 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
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