Definition of BLIZZARD

Did You Know?

The earliest recorded appearance of the word blizzard meaning “a severe snowstorm” was in the April 23, 1870 issue of a newspaper published in Estherville, Iowa. Blizzard shows up again during the following years in several newspapers in Iowa and neighboring states, and by 1888, when a snowstorm paralyzed the Eastern seaboard, the word was well-known nationally. However, in other senses, the word blizzard existed earlier. Davy Crocket, for instance, used it twice in the 1830s, once to mean a rifle blast and once to mean for a blast of words. All of these uses seem related, but the ultimate origin of the word is still unclear.

Examples of blizzard in a Sentence

We were snowed in by a raging blizzard.

Recent Examples on the Web

The blizzard was blamed for hundreds of vehicle crashes in Minnesota and left behind 25 inches of snow (63.5 centimeters) in northeast South Dakota. — Dave Kolpack, The Seattle Times, "Spring snowstorm buries Midwest, tornadoes possible in South," 12 Apr. 2019 Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska and South Dakota will take the brunt of it: As of Wednesday afternoon, these states have blizzard and winter storm warnings in effect and many schools and businesses are expected to be closed through Thursday. — Amanda Garrity, Good Housekeeping, "A Bomb Cyclone Will Slam 70 Million People Across the U.S. Because Winter Just Won't Quit," 13 Mar. 2019 Stepping out today in New York City for pal Meghan Markle's baby shower, the mother of two braved the blizzard and showed off a glamorous blowout worthy of a sunny June afternoon. — Jenna Rennert, Vogue, "Amal Clooney Perfects the Snow Day Blowout at Meghan Markle’s Baby Shower," 20 Feb. 2019 The storm is slated to move rapidly across the Midwest into New England, intensifying along the way and bringing near-blizzard conditions over parts of New England Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. — Alison Sider, WSJ, "Heavy Snow Threatens Travel Over Holiday Weekend," 18 Jan. 2019 At the moment, everyone is working on the blizzard that snowed in most of North Carolina on December 9th, temporarily shutting down flights to FedEx’s regional hub in Greensboro. — Jacqueline Detwiler, Popular Mechanics, "Inside FedEx’s Christmas Miracle," 19 Dec. 2018 Kenney's blizzard-strength cocaine snorting set the tone for the film's louchey-goosey location shoot at Rolling Hills Golf Club near Fort Lauderdale. — Allan Fallow, chicagotribune.com, "'Caddyshack': A comic masterpiece with 18 plot holes," 1 May 2018 The stars were brilliant like a blizzard of fireflies in the night. — Caroline Hallemann, Town & Country, "Read the Full Transcript of George P. Bush's Eulogy for His Grandfather, George H.W. Bush," 6 Dec. 2018 And Laidy Pepa’s hits the spot with its rich meat sauce and blizzard of supermarket parm. — Cnt Editors, Condé Nast Traveler, "Loud, Crowded, Grease-Stained, and Gloriously Drunk: Where the World Eats After Hours," 8 Oct. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'blizzard.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.