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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 Crockett, 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
Summer Lin, Los Angeles Times, 16 Nov. 2023
Chances for big snowstorms along the East Coast Some of the East Coast’s most memorable and crushing snowstorms in recent history have occurred during El Niño conditions, including back-to-back blizzards in February 2010 and a single blockbuster storm in January 2016.
—Scott Dance, Washington Post, 19 Oct. 2023
Here, they’ve ostensibly been given a platform through which to reclaim their images and ruminate on the blizzard of cultural forces that drove them to the top.
—Carrie Battan, The New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2023
Question: That was a real nightmare of a blizzard, wasn't it?
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 23 Aug. 2023
Inside these blizzards, dust particles whip along at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour.
—Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Oct. 2023
In May 2021 came the blizzard of deals: Exclusive live games went to current partners NBCUniversal, Disney/ESPN, Paramount, Fox and, in a first for a tech company, Amazon.
—Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Sep. 2023
Still, every El Niño winter is different; some produce very little snow, others bring blizzards.
—Jason Samenow, Washington Post, 9 Nov. 2023
August fog means a snowy winter, and low beehives portend a blizzard.
—Corey Buhay, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Oct. 2023
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'blizzard.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
origin unknown
1870, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Dictionary Entries Near blizzard
Cite this Entry
“Blizzard.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blizzard. Accessed 7 Dec. 2023.
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Kids Definition
blizzard
noun
More from Merriam-Webster on blizzard
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for 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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