graupel

noun

grau·​pel ˈgrau̇-pəl 

: granular snow pellets

called also soft hail

Did you know?

The word graupel is Germanic in origin; it is the diminutive of Graupe, meaning "pearl barley." According to etymologists, there does seem to be a grain of truth in the assumption that the word grew from the Slavic word krupa, which has the same meaning. Graupel was first seen in an 1889 weather report and has been whirling around in the meteorology field ever since to describe "pellets of snow" or "soft hail" (the latter phrase is an actual synonym of graupel).

Examples of graupel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Some showers could see graupel or wet snow mixed in, especially in northern to western areas. —Matt Rogers, Washington Post, 2 Apr. 2024

Social media video from southwest Denver, verified by NBC News, appeared to show graupel falling in the late afternoon. —Mirna Alsharif, NBC News, 25 Mar. 2024

Some snow grains or graupel could fall from the heaviest activity. —A. Camden Walker, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024

Small hail and graupel, or soft hail, can be expected with the stronger showers. —Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 3 Apr. 2024

Thunderstorms were expected across the region throughout the afternoon, possibly bringing hail and graupel with it, the post said. —The Arizona Republic, 1 Apr. 2024

The cold, combined with rain, graupel and snow from an overnight winter storm created icy roads in Kansas City’s Northland and led to crashes early in Wednesday morning’s commute. —Robert A. Cronkleton, Kansas City Star, 28 Feb. 2024

Phoenix typically sees a lot of graupel in the wintertime, Whittock said. —Laura Daniella Sepulveda, The Arizona Republic, 9 Jan. 2024

Perhaps even some pellets of graupel or snow grains mixing in. —A. Camden Walker, Washington Post, 1 Dec. 2023

Word History

Etymology

German

First Known Use

1889, in the meaning defined above

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