blizzard

noun bliz·zard \ ˈbli-zərd \

Updated on: 16 Apr 2018

Definition of blizzard

1 : a long severe snowstorm

2 : an intensely strong cold wind filled with fine snow

3 : an overwhelming rush or deluge

a blizzard of mail around the holidays

—

blizzardy

play \ˈbli-zər-dē\ or less commonly blizzardly play \-ˌzərd-lē\ adjective

See blizzard defined for English-language learners

See blizzard defined for kids

Examples of blizzard in a Sentence

We were snowed in by a raging blizzard.

Recent Examples of blizzard from the Web

Quinlan sat for an interview at Kensington’s Soup Kitchen during a March blizzard after the band, which also includes bass player Tyler Long, had gathered at Headroom earlier in the day.

— dan deluca, Philly.com, "Philly's Hop Along just released one of the most-anticipated albums of the year," 6 Apr. 2018
The Great Blizzard Included in The Enquirer’s coverage of the 1993 Super Storm was an article about the Great Blizzard of 1888, considered by some as the most severe blizzard in U.S. history.

— sheila vilvens, Cincinnati.com, "March is the month of nasty storms: Here are the two storms Saturday will be up against," 22 Mar. 2018
But earlier in the day, the office identified the body of a snowboarder who had gone missing Thursday night at a Lake Tahoe ski resort during a blizzard.

— hailey branson-potts, latimes.com, "Arctic storm finally brings rain to Southern California, but without mudslides that some feared," 3 Mar. 2018
In the end, the piece came out during a January blizzard.

— gil schwartz, New York Times, "Stanley Bing’s Real Identity Was a Closely Guarded Secret. Until It Wasn’t.," 23 Feb. 2018
But, during this blizzard, the barrel factory was silent!

— julie washington, cleveland.com, "Blizzard of 1978 remembered 40 years later by those who survived it (vintage photos, videos)," 21 Jan. 2018
Now the frenzied chords and blizzard of arpeggios in Chopin’s Prolinase are a piece of cake to play.

— r. douglas fields, Scientific American, "Wristband Lets the Brain Control a Computer with a Thought and a Twitch," 27 Mar. 2018
Somehow, this harrowing tale made it into the 40th paragraph of the day’s three-page blizzard coverage.

— mike newall, Philly.com, "Inquirer's breathless coverage of an 1888 blizzard shows Philly's always been nuts about the weather| Mike Newall," 22 Mar. 2018
Parts of southern New England and the New Jersey coast could also see blizzard conditions if powerful winds and heavy snow bands coincide, the National Weather Service said.

— nicole chavez, CNN, "More than 70 million people brace for nor'easter," 21 Mar. 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.

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.

Origin and Etymology of blizzard

origin unknown

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1870

See Words from the same year

Other Climate/Meteorology Terms

monsoon, occlusion, ozone, rime, squall, zephyr

BLIZZARD Defined for English Language Learners

blizzard

noun

Definition of blizzard for English Language Learners

: a severe snowstorm that goes on for a long time
: a large amount of something that comes suddenly

BLIZZARD Defined for Kids

blizzard

noun bliz·zard \ ˈbli-zərd \

Definition of blizzard for Students

: a long heavy snowstorm

Learn More about blizzard

See words that rhyme with blizzard Spanish Central: Translation of blizzard Nglish: Translation of blizzard for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of blizzard for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about blizzard

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blizzard

Definition of blizzard

blizzardy

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blizzard

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blizzard

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blizzardy

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