lapse rate
noun
: the adiabatic rate of decrease of atmospheric temperature with increasing altitude
Examples of lapse rate in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Insurers counted on policy lapse rates — people giving up their policies or defaulting on payments — of about 4 percent annually.
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Jonel Aleccia, New York Times, 22 Nov. 2023
Rather than endure the metropolis’s dog-day heat, the smart money—like Beijing’s Quing emperors or Fifth Avenue railroad tycoons—ascended to the nearest mountain top to take full advantage of the lapse rate.
—Andrew Nelson, WSJ, 10 Aug. 2022
This is called the lapse rate.
—Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2022
That created a very intense lapse rate in the atmosphere, where air temperature decreased very rapidly with altitude.
—Robin George Andrews, National Geographic, 13 Aug. 2019
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Jonel Aleccia, New York Times, 22 Nov. 2023
Rather than endure the metropolis’s dog-day heat, the smart money—like Beijing’s Quing emperors or Fifth Avenue railroad tycoons—ascended to the nearest mountain top to take full advantage of the lapse rate.
—Andrew Nelson, WSJ, 10 Aug. 2022
This is called the lapse rate.
—Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2022
That created a very intense lapse rate in the atmosphere, where air temperature decreased very rapidly with altitude.
—Robin George Andrews, National Geographic, 13 Aug. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Lapse rate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lapse%20rate. Accessed 30 Sep. 2025.
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