sirocco
Americannoun
plural
siroccos-
a hot, dry, dustladen wind blowing from northern Africa and affecting parts of southern Europe.
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a warm, sultry south or southeast wind accompanied by rain, occurring in the same regions.
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any hot, oppressive wind, especially one in the warm sector of a cyclone.
noun
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a hot oppressive and often dusty wind usually occurring in spring, beginning in N Africa and reaching S Europe
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any hot southerly wind, esp one moving to a low pressure centre
Etymology
Origin of sirocco
First recorded in 1610–20; from Italian, variant of scirocco, from Arabic sharq “east”
Explanation
A sirocco is a type of storm that occurs near the Mediterranean Sea. The winds of a sirocco sometimes reach the speed of a hurricane. You've probably heard of tornadoes, blizzards, hurricanes, and maybe even tsunamis — but siroccos are probably less familiar. These winds originate in the Sahara and blow across the Mediterranean into southern Europe. They often carry dust and rain and can make temperatures rise quickly. The dreaded siroccos are most common in spring and fall and can last for hours or even days. The Arabic root of sirocco is sharqi, "east wind."
Vocabulary lists containing sirocco
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.
As locals will tell you, nature is in charge here, and when a sirocco hits, you have to go with the flow.
From New York Times • May 29, 2024
On this occasion, though, we are all so in the thrall of Driver, who breezes in and out of “Burn This” like a sirocco, that we believe in his ability to turn Anna’s head.
From Washington Post • Apr. 21, 2019
In the summer, the squares are picked clean by le sirocco, a wind that originates in the Sahara and covers the rooftops in fine red sand.
From Salon • May 15, 2016
She was marvellous and monstrous, sirocco and mistral, fragile and brutish, inspired and vacant.
From The New Yorker • Jul. 18, 2014
The agents were forced to retreat, chased by the sirocco.
From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray
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.
