squall line

American  

noun

Meteorology.

1. a line or extended narrow region within which squalls or thunderstorms occur, often several hundred miles long.

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squall line British  

noun

1. a narrow zone along a cold front along which squalls occur See also line squall

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squall line Scientific  

1. A line of sudden, sometimes violent thunderstorms that develop on the leading edge of a cold front. Squall lines can form up to 80 to 240 km (50 to 149 mi) in front of an advancing cold front and can be more than 160 km (99 mi) long. The thunderstorms of a squall line can produce severe weather conditions, such as hail and rain accompanied by winds of over 96 km (60 mi) per hour; they are also associated with tornadoes, especially in spring and early summer.

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Example Sentences

While the storms weren’t tall enough to garner charge separation and contain thunder and lightning, their structure was otherwise similar to a thunderstorm squall line.

From Washington Post • Feb. 18, 2022

Part of a Metairie elementary school's roof was ripped off its foundation, which NOLA.com said was likely due to intense winds following the squall line of the storm.

From Fox News • Apr. 14, 2021

Gupta says that a low pressure area developed forming a squall line.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 21, 2019

The Marksville damage is just one example from a squall line that knocked out power to tens of thousands Monday, downing trees and damaging structures from Texas through Mississippi.

From Washington Times • Jan. 2, 2017

Beyond that the ocean vast and cold and shifting heavily like a slowly heaving vat of slag and then the gray squall line of ash.

From "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy

Related Words

• cold snap
• cold spell
• cold wave