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Synonyms

snowdrift

American  
[snoh-drift] / ˈsnoʊˌdrɪft /

noun

  1. a mound or bank of snow driven together by the wind.

  2. snow driven before the wind.

snowdrift British  
/ ˈsnəʊˌdrɪft /

noun

  1. a bank of deep snow driven together by the wind

"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

Etymology

Origin of snowdrift

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; snow, drift

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.

On the railway, Network Rail has been working to clear heavy snowdrifts blocking lines across northern Scotland.

From BBC

More waste arrives daily, piling up like technicolour snowdrifts along the roads and rivers of Xa Cau, one of hundreds of "craft" recycling villages encircling Vietnam's capital Hanoi where waste is sorted, shredded and melted.

From Barron's

By this time there was a snowdrift of torn-up paper heaped around her chair.

From Literature

The glacier was covered with slick ice and sweeping snowdrifts and deep crevasses.

From Literature

There have been reports of heavy snowdrifts and strong winds in the area.

From BBC

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.