| 释义 |
▪ I. snow, n.1|snəʊ|
Forms: α. (Latterly north. and Sc.) 1– snaw, 4–6, 8–9 snawe; 1 snauw, 1–4, 6 snau, 5 snaue; 1, 9 sna, 9 snaa. β. 3– snow (3 snou, snov), 3–7 snowe (5 sknowe), 9 dial. sno, snoo. γ. 3–4 snouh, 3 snovȝ, 4 snowh, snowȝ, snoȝ.
[Common Teutonic: OE. snáw, = OFris. *snê (WFris. snie, EFris. snē, snö, NFris. sne, sni, snīe), MDu. sneeu, sneu, snee (Du. sneeuw, dial. snee), OS. snêu, snêw- (MLG. and LG. snee), OHG. snêo, snêw- (MHG. snê, G. schnee), ON. snǽr, snjár, snjór (Icel. snjór, Norw. snjo, snjø, snø, etc.; MSw. snyo, snyö, etc., Sw. snö; MDa. snø, sne, Da. sne), Goth. snaiws:—OTeut. *snaiwaz. Various grades of the pre-Teut. stem are widely represented in the cognate languages, as Lith. snëgas, OSlav. snegŭ (Russ. snieg'), OIr. snechta (Ir. sneachd), L. niv-is (nix), Gr. νίϕα (acc.) snow, νίϕει it snows, etc.]
I.
1. a. The partially frozen vapour of the atmosphere falling in flakes characterized by their whiteness and lightness; the fall of these flakes, or the layer formed by them on the surface of the ground.
αc825Vesp. Ps. cxlvii. 16 Se seleð snaw swe swe wulle. a1000Boeth. Metr. xxix. 63 Swylce haᵹal & snaw hrusan leccað On wintres tid. c1050O.E. Chron. (MS. C) an. 1046, On þis ylcan ᵹeare..com se stranga winter mid forste & mid snawe. c1175Lamb. Hom. 35 Ic walde fein pinian and sitten on forste and on snawe up et mine chinne. c1205Lay. 27459 Flan al swa þicke swa þe snau adun ualleð. a1300Cursor M. 22692 A stormi dai..Bath o frost, and hail, and snau. 1375Barbour Bruce ix. 128 This wes eftir the Martymes, Quhen snaw had helit all the land. 1432–50tr. Higden (Rolls) I. 265 Peple..whiche haue plente of snawe in the tyme of somer. 1549Compl. Scot. vi. 59 The snau is ane congelit rane. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 31 How deip saeuir be the snawe,..thay nevir thair heid sett vndir the ruffe of ony hous. 1781Burns Winter i, The stormy North sends driving forth The blinding sleet and snaw. 1863Quinn Heather Lintie (ed. 2) 196, I..saw Puir Robin 'midst the driftin snaw.
βc1200Trin. Coll. Hom. 99 Þis is þe holi manne [= manna] þe ure drihten sende alse snow sleðrende. c1250Owl & Night. 413 Þu singest so doþ hen a snowe. 13..Fall & Passion 13 in E.E.P., Seue daies a seue niȝt as ȝe seeþ þat falliþ snowe. 1377Langl. P. Pl. B. xv. 110 A dongehul, Þat were bysnewed with snowe. c1400Destr. Troy 10971 Of cleane white, As the glyssenond glemes þat glenttes on þe sknowe. c1425Cast. Persev. 2642 in Macro Plays 156 It [riches] flyet a-wey, as any snow. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 140 Let vs stande there in y⊇ rayne or snowe, all thus storuen for colde. 1562Heywood Prov. & Epigr. (1867) 51 Snow is white And lyeth in the dike. 1617Moryson Itin. i. 179, I could hardly keepe him..from being drowned in the snow. 1672Petty Pol. Anat. (1691) 50 The Snow lies not long in the lower ground of Ireland. 1774Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) I. 372 Some vapours that ascend to great heights, will be frozen into snow. 1813Sir H. Davy Agric. Chem. (1814) 209 Snow and ice are bad conductors of heat. 1860Tyndall Glac. i. ii. 19 A vast quantity of snow fell during the night. 1878Huxley Physiogr. 155 Snow is white and opaque in consequence of the air entangled among its crystals.
γc1250Owl & Night. 430 Hwanne snouh liþ þikke & wide. c1290S. Eng. Leg. I. 209 Þat..caldore was þane ani ys oþur snovȝ. c1320Cast. Love 722 Þe snowȝ [v.r. snowh] þat is sneuwynge. 1382Wyclif Prov. xxvi. 1 What maner snoȝ in somer, and reyn in rep time [etc.].
b. Taken as a type of whiteness or brightness.
See also driven ppl. a. 2.
c825Vesp. Ps. l. 9 Ofer snaw ic biom ᵹehwitad. c950Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. xvii. 2 Wedo his ᵹeworden weron huita sua sna [Rushw. snau]. 971Blickling Hom. 147 Heo hæfde seofon siþum beorhtran saule þonne snaw. a1200Vices & Virtues 83 Ðanne wurð ic..hwittere ðane ani snaw. 1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 9514 Wite cloþes heo dude hire on, as wo seiþ, ilich þe snowe. a1366Chaucer Rom. Rose 558 Hir throte, al-so whyt of hewe, As snow on braunche snowed newe. 1423Jas. I Kingis Q. lxvii, Hir faire fresche face, as quhite as ony snawe. a1533Ld. Berners Huon lxx. 239 He chaunged coloure and waxed as whyte as snowe. 1593G. Fletcher Licia, etc. (Grosart) 106 So is my sweet, much paler than the snowe. 1634Sir T. Herbert Trav. 25 The Ocean was as white as snow. 1730–46Thomson Autumn 916 How, white as hyperborean snow To form the lucid lawn. 1817Shelley Rev. Islam i. liv, Some, whose white hair shone Like mountain snow.
c. In various fig. or allusive uses.
a1548Hall Chron., Edw. IV, 43 Why you..so sore laboured and entyced me to passe ouer the Sea, promysynge mountaines of Golde, whiche turned into snowe. 1591Shakes. Two. Gent. ii. vii. 19 Thou wouldst as soone goe kindle fire with snow. 1594― Rich. III, i. iv. 249 Cla. O do not slander him, for he is kinde. [First Murderer.] Right, as Snow in Haruest. 1668Dryden Dram. Poesy Ess. (ed. Ker) I. 43 He was not only a professed imitator of Horace, but a learned plagiary of all the others; you track him every where in their snow. 1738Wesley's Hymns, ‘Come holy Spirit, send down those Beams’ iii, Warm with thy Fire our Hearts of Snow. 1854A. E. Baker Northampt. Gloss. s.v., He looks as cold as snow in harvest. 1860Hughes Tom Brown at Oxf. xxxiii, When one has been a year at Oxford, there isn't much snow left to soil. 1862Pusey in Liddon Life (1897) IV. 241 Here..we seem to be so familiar with our evils as to acquiesce in them, sleeping in the snow, which is death.
d. With adjs. of colour, denoting snow tinged by various foreign substances, or the alga, etc., to which the colouring is due.
1678–[see red snow 1]. 1842Penny Cycl. XXII. 168/1 A field of green snow. Ibid., Martius arrived at the conclusion..that the green snow (Protococcus viridis) and the red (P. nivalis) are one and the same plant. 1898Westm. Gaz. 31 Mar. 7/2 Black snow in the Lake district... On Tuesday,..it is stated, there was a sharp fall of perfectly black snow. 1909Cent. Dict. Suppl. s.v., Golden snow.
2. a. A fall of snow; a snowstorm. Now rare.
Not always clearly distinguishable from sense 3.
c888K. ælfred Boeth. xxiii, Norðanwindas & micle renas & snawas. 1408tr. Vegetius' De Re Milit. (MS. Digby 233) 186/2 Sodeyn snowes..rysyng & encrees of ryuers & flodus. 1489–90Plumpton Corr. (Camden) 90 At my departing I rode..a full troubleous way in that great snaw. 1562Child Marr. 112 Apon a saturday afore that tyme, beynge a gret snowe. 1588Shakes. L.L.L. i. i. 106 At Christmas I no more desire a Rose, Then wish a Snow in Mayes new fangled showes. 1694S. Sewall Diary 16 Mar., A great Snow falls. 1717Ibid. 20 Feb., Another Snow coming on. 1740T. Smith Jrnl. (1849) 268 We had only two snows and sledding but about three weeks. 1803M. Charlton Wife & Mistress II. 92 Her good man..walked through a very thick snow, to inform her [etc.]. 1817Shelley Rev. Islam ix. xxi, Next come the snows, and rain, And frosts, and storms.
transf.1728Pope Dunc. iii. 262 How calm he sits at ease, 'Mid snows of paper and fierce hail of pease. 1855Kingsley Westw. Ho! xix, Great white tassels..tossed in their faces a fragrant snow of blossoms. 1866B. Taylor Poems, Poet's Jrnl. 31 The bosom of the lawn Whitened beneath her silent snow of light.
b. As marking a period of time; a winter.
1778J. Carver Trav. N.-Amer. 250 Those [Indians] in the interior parts..count their years by winters; or, as they express themselves, by snows. 1825Longfellow Burial of Minnisink iv, Thirty snows had not yet shed Their glory on the warrior's head. 1841Catlin N. Amer. Ind. (1844) I. xx. 147 The notches he had recorded for the snows (or years) of his life. 1850Tennyson In Mem. xxii. 4 Thro' four sweet years.., from snow to snow.
3. a. An accumulation, mass, expanse, or field, of snow.
c1374Chaucer Troylus v. 10 The golden-tressed Phebus..Thryes hadde alle with his bemes shene The snowes molte. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 5 [There are] mony weitis, deip snawis. 1660F. Brooke tr. Le Blanc's Trav. 347 There is a large river.., which some Spanish were about to crosse, but could not for snows. 1693Dryden, etc. Juvenal vi. (1697) 127 When Winter shuts the Seas, and fleecy Snows Make Houses white. 1705Addison Italy 125 This River..was much increas'd by the melting of the Snows when Cæsar pass'd it. 1748Gray Alliance 77 O'er Libya's deserts and through Zembla's snows. 1820Scott Monast. xxxi, The snows of that Mont Blanc which we saw together. 1854Hooker Himal. Jrnls. II. xxix. 294 The most conspicuous group of snows seen from Khasia. 1878Browning La Saisiaz 24 Yonder, where the far snows blanch Mute Mont Blanc.
b. pl. The regions of perpetual snow; the Arctic regions.
1844Emerson Young American Wks. (Bohn) II. 296 To men legislating for the area betwixt..the snows and the tropics.
4. Ellipt. for snow tyre, sense 8 b below. N. Amer.
1968Globe & Mail (Toronto) 13 Jan. 26/2 (Advt.), 67 Fiat,..special exhaust, snows. 1977Detroit Free Press 11 Dec. 22-d/8 (Advt.), '73 F-350 V8 4spd, dual tanks, PsPb, Ranger, snows.
II.
5. Applied to various things or substances having the colour or appearance of snow: a. Cookery. A dish or confection resembling snow in appearance, esp. one made by whipping the white of eggs to a creamy consistency.
1597Bk. Cookerie F b, How to make Snowe. Take a quart of thicke cream, and fiue or sixe whites of eggs [etc.]. 1864Englishw. in India 173 Whip the whites of six eggs to a hard snow. a1887Cassell's Dict. Cookery 375 Lemon snow. Ibid. 887 Recipes for the following snows will be found under their respective headings. Ibid., Apple snow may be iced.
b. Chem. One or other of various substances having a snow-like appearance (see quots.). spec. Solid carbon dioxide.
1802Encycl. Brit. Suppl. I. 240 A white powder, formerly called snow or white flowers of antimony. This is the white oxyd of antimony. 1815J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 401 Argentine snow, or flowers of antimony. 1841Civil Eng. & Arch. Jrnl. IV. 317/1 A small piece of this carbonic acid snow was placed on the surface of water. 1913J. Hall-Edwards Carbon Dioxide Snow 28 Having prepared our cone, or stick of snow..the first step is to place the patient in a comfortable and easy position. 1931Dougherty & Kearney Fire 243 The ‘snow’ does not freeze the fire as is sometimes erroneously believed, but blankets or smothers it. 1951Whitby & Hynes Med. Bacteriol. (ed. 5) ii. 20 Many bacteria and viruses..may be preserved by rapid freezing to -70°C, with Co2-snow. 1974L. E. Long Geology i. 19 A frozen ‘snow’ of methane and ammonia glued the dust particles into globs that eventually grew to about the size of basketballs. 1979Nature 30 Aug. 738/1 Much of the distributed SO2 snow would be expected to fall within a few tens of kilometres of the scarps [on Jupiter's satellite Io].
c. poet. White marble.
1848Bailey Festus Proëm (ed. 3) p. vii, Ere new marmoreal floods had spread their couch Of perdurable snow.
d. slang (orig. U.S.). Cocaine; occas. heroin or morphine.
1914Jackson & Hellyer Vocab. Criminal Slang 78 Snow,..derived from the extremely flocculent nature of cocaine when pulverized. 1915Policeman's Monthly Dec. 17/3 One day, his pal found him depressed and told him to take a little sniff of ‘snow’, as heroin is known to the vernacular of the criminal. 1925A. P. Herbert Laughing Ann 92 Don't let her know about whisky and ‘snow’. 1933N. Douglas Looking Back II. 364 He..walked up and down the room..taking, every now and then, a pinch of cocaine... ‘I didn't know you took snow.’ 1956[see jab v. e]. 1966‘A. Hall’ 9th Directive iii. 25 Pangsapa was a narcotics contrabandist and would therefore know people..prepared to kill for a fix of snow. 1967N. Lucas C.I.D. x. 135 Luckier still not to have graduated from pep pills to..‘Snow’..—morphine. 1979P. Driscoll Pangolin xx. 151 ‘Tell me how much this roll will get me.’ ‘I guess around a hundred twenty grams. That's..the purest snow you'll ever see.’
e. slang. (Silver) money.
1925Fraser & Gibbons Soldier & Sailor Words & Phrases 263 Snow, money. Silver. 1936J. Curtis Gilt Kid 173 Count up that snow while I go through the other drawers. 1970F. McKenna Gloss. Railwaymen's Talk 38 Snow, small silver i.e. sixpences.
f. Spots that appear as a flickering mass filling a television or radar screen, caused by interference or a low signal-to-noise ratio.
1946Proc. IRE XXXIV. 428/2 These [current] fluctuations give rise to a masking effect, often referred to as ‘snow’, in the transmitted picture. 1950Heller & Shulman Television Servicing vi. 121 Low signal input may be recognized by the characteristic presence of ‘snow’ in the received picture. 1977J. Cheever Falconer 209, I took my TV... I had a little snow and asked the repairman to come in. 1978Sci. Amer. Apr. 18/1 The most commonly encountered white noise is the thermal noise produced by the random motions of electrons through an electrical resistance. It causes most of the static in a radio or amplifier and the ‘snow’ on radar and television screens when there is no input.
6. a. The white hair of age. Chiefly in phrases. Also pl.
1638R. Baker tr. Balzac's Lett. (vol. III) 57 If my passions be cooled by the snow of my head, I have then never a white hair [etc.]. 1743Francis tr. Hor., Odes v. xvii. 30 Thy fragrant Odours on my Head More than the Snows of Age have shed. 1757Duncombe tr. Horace, Odes ii. xi. 9 Age drops her Snow upon our Heads. 1852Thackeray Esmond i. ii, Attiring herself like summer though her head was covered with snow. 1871R. Ellis Catullus lxiv. 309 Wreaths sat on each hoar crown, whose snows flush'd rosy beneath them.
b. slang. (See quots.)
1811Lexicon-Balatronicum, Snow, linen hung out to dry or bleach. 1812J. H. Vaux Flash Dict., Snow, clean linen from the washerwoman's hands, whether it be wet or dry. 1859Slang Dict. 97 Snow, wet linen.
c. White bloom or blossom; spray or foam.
1859Geo. Eliot A. Bede i, The elder-bushes which were spreading their summer snow close to the open window. 1885J. H. Dell Dawning Grey, Songs of the Surges 97, I stood looking forth o'er the surges,—Looking forth o'er their squadrons of snow. 1900Westm. Gaz. 14 Apr. 2/3 With the May rain still on their petalled snow.
d. In some popular names of plants, as snow-in-harvest, snow-in-summer (see quots.). Also snow-on-the-mountain.
1881Leicester Gloss. 247 Snow-in-harvest,..a flower, Cerastium tomentosum. 1886Britten & Holland Plant Names 440 Snow-in-harvest,..(2) Clematis Vitalba... (3) Alyssum maritimum.
7. a. The pure white colour of snow; snow-white. Chiefly poet.
a1745Broome in Fawke's Anacreon, Ode liii. 33 (1760) 126 The Graces more enchanting show, When rosy Blushes paint their Snow. 1760Macpherson Fragm. Anc. Poetry xiv. 65 The youth with the breast of snow! 1827Scott Highl. Widow v, The daughters of the land were beautiful, with blue eyes and fair hair, and bosoms of snow. 1843A. Bethune Sc. Fireside Stor. 163 Her eye sae bright and womanly—Her breast o' mountain snaw.
b. pl. White breasts.
1803Visct. Strangford Poems of Camoens (1810) 41 Starlight eyes, and heaving snows.
III. 8. attrib. a. In the sense of ‘consisting or composed of snow; covered, filled, or mixed with snow; derived from, due to, made in, snow’, etc.; as snow-bank, snow-bed, snow-berg, snow-blast, snow block, snow bridge, snow-cave, snow-cloud, snow cover, snow-crust, snow-flurry, snow-glare, snow-hut, snow-light, snow-patch, snow-squall, etc.
Many combs. of this type occur in works specially dealing with Alpine or Arctic regions, as Kane Arctic Explor. (1856), Tyndall Glaciers (1860), etc.
1779E. Parkman Diary (1899) 194 *Snow-Banks very high one nigh my saddle-house 6 feet high. 1803Visct. Strangford Poems of Camoens (1810) 106 Like snow-banks scatter'd with the blooms of May. 1845–50A. H. Lincoln Lect. Bot. xxiv. 139 The Crocus,..not unfrequently blossoming in the neighbourhood of a snow-bank.
1857M. Arnold Rugby Chapel 100 The unseen *snow-beds dislodge Their hanging rain. 1884Good Words Jan. 43/1 We now hastened..across the old snow-beds.
1840R. Bremner Excur. Denmark, etc. I. 219 Its towers turned into *snow-bergs.
1773Cook's Voy. i. iv. 47 The cold was now become more severe, and the *snow-blasts more frequent. 1889Gretton Memory's Harkback 210 A snow-blast fell upon them, to Devonians almost an unknown thing.
1893‘Mark Twain’ in Cosmopolitan Nov. 54/1 My father..built this great mansion of frozen *snow-blocks. 1973W. S. Avis in Occasional Papers Dept. English R. Military Coll. Canada (1978) No. 2. 152 A knife..used primarily in cutting snow blocks for igloo-building. 1982S. B. Flexner Listening to America 22 Alaskan Eskimos often built their igloos out of animal skins, driftwood, etc., using snow⁓block ones only for temporary or emergency shelters.
1890Moose Jaw (Saskatchewan) Times 20 June 1/4 Every observant passenger on the Canadian Pacific Railroad had noticed the *snow bridge on the Illecillewaet, but there are records of ice bridges also. 1921A. Lunn Alpine Skiing vii. 83 On the Grenz glacier a snow-bridge fourteen feet thick, and in the recent Oberaarfoch accident a snow-bridge six feet thick, collapsed beneath men on skis. 1939[see schrund]. 1979C. Kilian Icequake xiii. 228 The snow bridges seem good and thick, but the quake probably weakened them.
1871Proctor Light Sci. 110 Observing the earth's polar *snow-caps must lead to several important conclusions.
1972D. Haston In High Places ix. 103 On descending they found Mick at the col installed in a *snow-cave that he had dug out. 1981Nordic Skiing Jan. 21/2 You can imagine me huddled in my own hastily dug snow cave waiting out the blizzard.
1879I. L. Bird Lady's Life in Rocky Mountains x. 168 Looming vaguely through a heavy *snow-cloud. 1899Crockett Kit Kennedy 318 A light haze of snow-cloud obscured the lesser stars.
1871Whymper Scrambles Alps xii. (1900) 246 These *snow-cornices are common on the crests of high mountain ridges.
1919Sci. Monthly IX. 397 A winter *snow-cover prevents deep freezing of the ground. 1956A. Garnett in D. L. Linton Sheffield 48, 1947..was phenomenal for the prolonged and severe cold weather experienced and for the long duration of a snow cover.
1820Shelley Liberty xiii, The cold *Snow-crags by its reply are cloven in sunder.
1824S. Black Jrnl. 24 May (1955) 14 They left the Fort in March on the *snow crust. 1957G. E. Hutchinson Treat. Limnol. I. iii. 214 Teis (1946) examined various snow crusts and firn samples. 1979R. Fiennes Hell on Ice iv. 63 The wind-firm snowcrust.
1866Chambers's Encycl. VIII. 789/1 The different prismatic rays issuing from the minute *snow-crystals.
1856Kane Arctic Explor. I. xxi. 267 The fine impacted *snow-dust of winter.
1879I. L. Bird Lady's Life in Rocky Mountains ix. 124 The wild flowers are gorgeous..though..the recent *snow⁓flurries have finished them. 1936Geogr. Jrnl. LXXXVII. 133 On September 1 came the first snow-flurries of the season.
1797Coleridge Anc. Mar. Marg. Notes 3 A great sea-bird..came through the *snow-fog. 1897Outing XXIX. 368/2 The shadowy forms of birds rapidly vanished in the snow-fog.
1860Mayne Reid Odd People 394 More likely it is the *snow-glare to which the Laplander, as well as the Esquimaux, is much exposed, that brings about the copious watering of the eyes. 1962L. S. Sasieni Optical Dispensing xiii. 326 In snow glare protection is required against the ultra-violet. 1970R. D. Taring Daughter of Tibet xix. 246 Between the smoke and the snow-glare of the day our eyes were red and watering and very sore.
1827Scott Diary 28 May, As ideas..flag and something like a *snow haze covers my whole imagination.
1823Lit. Gaz. 25 Oct. 673/3 A tribe of about fifty Esquimaux who were erecting their *snow-huts. 1882Imperial Dict., Snow-hut,..a hut built of snow. 1930V. Sackville-West Edwardians i. 28 He had been marooned..somewhere near the South Pole in a snow-hut.
1844Civ. Eng. & Arch. Jrnl. VII. 332/2 If the latter freezes, the result is ‘*snow-ice’, which is of no value. 1882Geikie Text-bk. Geol. ii. ii. 110 Snow-ice is formed above the snow-line, but may descend in glaciers far below it.
1878Seeley Stein II. 513 Out of what planet have these people dropped into Muscovy's frozen *snowland?
1830M. O'Brien Jrnl. (1968) i. ix. 87 It was dark—as dark as it can be with *snowlight. 1879Browning Ivan Ivanovitch 114 Daylight, bred between Moon-light and snow-light.
1872C. King Sierra Nevada vi. 126 Rosy peaks, with dull, silvery *snow-marblings.
1866Whittier Snow-Bound 96 The sun through dazzling *snow-mist shone.
1870Bryant Iliad xiii. II. 40 Seen from afar, like a *snow-mountain's peak.
1882Garden 7 Jan. 5/2 Alpine flowers..striving to bloom in the *snow-ooze on the Alps.
1909*Snow-patch [see flora 3 b]. 1979B. John World of Ice 26 (caption) The peaks and mountain-sides at this time of year are almost free of snow and ice, and only a few perennial snowpatches remain.
a1835Mrs. Hemans Chamois Hunter's Love Poems (1875) 450 Where the *snow-peaks gleam like stars.
1837J. E. Murray Summer in Pyrenees II. 201 note, The wreath might terminate..in a *snow-plain.
1807J. Barlow Columb. vi. 161 Hail, sleet and *snow-rack far behind him fly. 1854H. Miller Sch. & Schm. (1858) 13 When..the driving snow-rack cleared up.
1857Emerson Poems 41 *Snow-ridges masked each darling spot.
1884Congregationalist June 493 A *snow river crashing down the sides of the mountain.
1880F. W. Burbidge Gardens of Sun i. 9 Here and there the surface is rippled like a *snow-ruck.
1827Clare Sheph. Cal. 85 Like spots of *snow-shine in dark fairy rings. 1887Swinburne Poems & Ball. 3rd Ser. (1897) 3 As the sunshine quenches the snowshine.
1807Gass Jrnl. 181 There were several *snow showers during the day. 1850E. Brontë Wuthering Heights ii, The first feathery flakes of a snow-shower.
1841Whittier Funeral Tree of the Sokokis 12 Where the..*snow-slide left its dusky streak. 1891E. Roper By Track & Trail x. 138 High precipitous mountains..scored with snow-slides.
1774Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1824) I. 69 *Snow-slips, well known, and greatly dreaded by travellers. 1898Speaker Oct. 410 The snow-slips are very destructive in this narrow valley.
1860Tyndall Glac. i. xiv. 96 Precipitous *snow-slopes, fluted by the descent of..avalanches. 1878Hooker & Ball Marocco 263 We had kept close to one of these long and..narrow snowslopes.
1837Carlyle Fr. Rev. iii. iii. iv, In the *snow-slush of last winter. 1860Tyndall Glac. i. xiv. 96 Our way lying in part through deep snow-slush.
1775E. Wild Jrnl. 6 Dec. in Mass. Hist. Soc. Proc. (1886) II. 287 The weather is attended with *Snow Squalls. 1888Nature 2 Feb. 333 Copeland..was almost completely thwarted by snow-squalls.
1837Carlyle Fr. Rev. i. ii. i, There are *Snow-statues raised by the poor in hard winter.
1856Kane Arctic Explor. I. ix. 95 The *snow-streams or gullies that led to a gorge.
1819L. Richmond in Grimshawe Memoir (1828) xiii. 432 Illuminated with *snow-sunshine.
1877Bryant Poems, Little People of the Snow 106 The little maiden..climbed the rounded *snow-swells.
1765Goldsm. Trav. 189 The den where *snow-tracks mark the way.
1844Mrs. Browning Drama of Exile 1708 As the *snow-wind beats blindly on the moorland.
b. In the sense of ‘used for, or in connexion with, snow’, as snow-anchor, snow-board, snow-boot, snow buggy, snow chain, snow-coat, snow-fence, snow-fencing, snow gallery, snow gauge, snow-glasses, snow-pants, snow-scoop, snow scooter, snow-shed, snow spectacles, snow-stake, snow-suit, snow tractor, snow tyre, snow vehicle, etc.
1971C. Bonington Annapurna South Face 248 The ‘dead men’ were an outstanding success and..gave by far the most reliable..*snow anchor we were able to use on the expedition. 1972D. Haston In High Places xi. 120 Using devious combinations of snow-stakes, ‘dead men’ (or snow-anchors).., they took two days to come out of those overhangs.
1881W. P. Buchan Plumbing (ed. 3) xi. 70 A style which serves both as a *snow-board and as a preventive of broken chimney cans, loose slates, &c., falling over the roof. 1971Country Life 14 Oct. 964/1 Notices warning of snow-board avalanches had been posted..that very morning.
1773Phil. Trans. LXIII. 225 Each of the three species of Tetras..; it is usually said with us, that they have in winter their *snow-boots. 1856S. Osborn M'Clure's Discovery North-West Passage xii. 160 The heavy falls the men experienced in their thick winter clothing and cloth snow-boots. 1962A. Lurie Love & Friendship i. viii. 142 She came..to ask if she could borrow my snowboots to walk in the snow with. 1970Toronto Daily Star 24 Sept. 16/3 (Advt.), Tamarack snow boots. The new style.
1949Sun (Baltimore) 8 Feb. 15/3 Second Army headquarters..is sending 48 ‘*snow buggy’ operators..to the aid of snow⁓bound Nebraskans... Their main job will be to drive weasels, the Army's special vehicle for snow-covered terrain. 1965Kingston (Ontario) Whig-Standard 27 Dec. 17 (caption) Roaring through the snow at speeds..approaching 35 miles-an-hour on the..new snow buggy.
1975Islander (Victoria, B.C.) 9 Feb. 12/1 If you don't have *snow chains, don't even try to get up the steep logging road. 1981P. Turnbull Deep & Crisp & Even i. 8 An ambulance with snow chains drove along the street.
1963N.Y. Times 15 Dec. 18/7 (Advt.), This jaunty..pile⁓lined ‘*snowcoat’ gets you ready for Winter's worst! 1965Harper's Bazaar Nov. 95 Fir green quilted snowcoat.
1768Phil. Trans. LX. 109 note, *Snow-eyes, which..are most excellently contrived for preserving the eyes from the effect of the snow in the spring.
1873G. M. Grant Ocean to Ocean ix. 261 The high mountains..act as natural *snow fences. 1885Longman's Mag. Feb. 423 These cuttings had not been protected..with snow..fences. 1902Nature 4 Sept. 454 Snow-fences are commonly erected in Canada to check the rate of snow-drifting.
1953Canad. Geogr. Jrnl. XLVI. 68/2 Others made cribs out of *snow fencing and piled the grain in the open fields. 1972L. Hancock Sleeping Bag viii. 181 We dug an extensive salt-water pool and walk-in aviary..then snow-fencing enclosures for the raptorial birds.
1884Knight Dict. Mech. Suppl. 826 *Snow Flanges,..a bar of iron or steel attached to a car or engine to scrape away snow and ice on the sides..of the rails.
1874*Snow gallery [see round timber s.v. round a. 15 a]. 1975D. Bagley Snow Tiger xix. 157 They build snow galleries over roads..in Switzerland. The snow goes straight over the top.
1886Encycl. Brit. XX. 257/1 Glaisher's rain and *snow gauge. 1939Meteorol. Gloss. (Met. Office) (ed. 3) 172 In the Hellmann-Fuess snow-gauge the snow is caught in a receiver supported on a balance, the displacement of which is continuously recorded. 1952E. F. Davies Illyrian Venture ii. 32 The snow gauges on the mountain passes, dead tree trunks with marks nailed to them to show the depth of the winter drifts.
1927E. Hemingway Men without Women 162 Around the major's eyes were two white circles where his *snow-glasses had protected his face from the sun on the snow. 1975E. Hillary Nothing Venture, Nothing Win xi. 175 Wilkins..seemed comparatively unhurt, although his snowglasses had cut his forehead.
188719th Cent. Nov. 672 Mr. Murdock..found an Eskimo *snow-goggle. 1893Earl Dunmore Pamirs I. 59 The reflection..off the snow would have been positively blinding had we not been provided with snow goggles.
1844H. Stephens Bk. Farm II. 622 A *snow-harrow or a snow-plough will be found a useful implement.
1865Lubbock Preh. Times 401 In the South the men have..*snow-knives, ice-chisels [etc.].
1948T. Onraet Sixty Below 100 The ordinary *snow pants and parka are made with the least possible openings. 1962N.Y. Post 9 Oct. 22 (Advt.), Infants' pile snowsuits... Matching, contrasting snowpants. 1978Detroit Free Press 5 Mar. d1/1 It was still cold and your mother made you put on your coat, hat and mittens, but you could never-mind the ‘snow pants’ by now.
1875Wood & Lapham Waiting for Mail 36 We found him lying beside the *snow-pole just on the hill.
1901Blackw. Mag. Nov. 688/1 It is then only accessible with dog-sleighs and *snow-raquets.
1856Kane Arctic Explor. II. i. 21 A *snow-saw.
1961J. W. Anderson Fur Trader's Story x. 80, I struck the tent, loaded the toboggan with tent, stove,..*snow scoop.. and so forth, and set off. 1963Engineering 18 Jan. 79 The manufacturers are now considering adding the snow-scoop to their range of standard attachments.
1964Star Weekly (Toronto) 19 Dec. 13/1 The odd little *snow scooters you see cavorting about..represent the newest phenomenon to revolutionize Canadian sport, family living—and business. 1969Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 5 Sept. 27/3 Reindeer-tending Lapps of northern Norway use snow scooters to round up strays and transport supplies. 1981Times 14 Dec. 22/8 Four policemen..have been..to North Cape, in Norway, for charity. They reached there on snow scooters.
1864N. & Q. 3rd Ser. VI. 454/1 The Icelanders have their *snow-shades, but a reader has no protection from paper glare.
1868Oregon State Jrnl. 22 Aug. 2/3 The Pacific Railroad advertises for a thousand men to build *snow sheds on the summit. 1875Knight Dict. Mech., Snow-shed, a protection for a railway-track in exposed situations. 1882Pidgeon Engineer's Holiday I. 275 The track is covered by snow-sheds. 1965E. McCourt Road across Canada 177 In Glacier [B.C.] more than half a mile of snowsheds, solidly built of steel and concrete.., guard the most vulnerable spots. 1971Daily Tel. 9 Jan. 9/2 The railway line runs through numerous long snow-sheds in these high lands [in Norway]. These are built over the line to keep it free of snow in winter.
1820Scoresby Acc. Arctic Reg. II. 233 A wooden ‘mallet’, and ‘*snow-shovel’.
1854R. G. Latham Native Races Russian Emp. 84 The skide (pronounced she) is a *snow-skate upwards of six feet long. 1897Outing XXIX. 357/2 For this purpose nothing could be better than the snowshoe and snowskate, or ski, of to-day.
1793Holcroft tr. Lavater's Physiog. xix. 97 The effusions of light from the snow (to guard against which the Esquimaux wear *snow-spectacles). 1901H. Seebohm Birds of Siberia v. 47 The glare of the sunshine on the white snow forced us to wear snow spectacles.
1971C. Bonington Annapurna South Face viii. 95, I pushed in a *snow-stake, but it went in too easily and would almost certainly be pulled out if I fell on it. 1972Snow-stake [see snow-anchor above].
1942D. Powell Time to be Born i. 37 The red *snow suit her mother had promised. 1962A. Lurie Love & Friendship i. iii. 53 Emmy put Freddy into his snow-suit. 1980Daily Tel. 9 Jan. 1/8 There was no sign of the guerrillas in the rugged terrain, but Russians and their armour, including tanks, were everywhere. Some were in white snow suits.
1886Daily News 28 Dec. 5/7 Yesterday morning the *snow-sweep, drawn by six horses, was got to work early.
1936Canad. Geogr. Jrnl. XII. 34/2 Somebody began to work on the idea of snowmobiles and *snow tractors. 1971Country Life 14 Oct. 964/1 Hardly had the two children been freed when they [sc. a rescue team] were on the spot, having covered the ground in a snow⁓tractor.
1885Longman's Mag. Feb. 425 About nine o'clock the ‘snow outfit’ steamed in. The *snow-train was made up of six vehicles.
1954Sun (Baltimore) 23 Jan. 8/1 Now it's chains vs. *snow tires, the treachery of the steep hill by the lake and stern telephone calls to warn the little woman off the roads. 1968‘E. McBain’ Fuzz xii. 197 The snow..presented no major traffic problems as yet, especially if..one had snow tyres on one's automobile. 1978Times 23 Jan. 12/7 Avis..had only one car they could rent me and it had no snow tyres or chains.
1968Globe & Mail (Toronto) 3 Feb. 46/3 (heading) *Snow vehicles.
c. In the sense of ‘snow-like, white as snow’.
1750tr. Leonardus' Mirr. Stones 94 It has a brown or iron colour, sprinkled over with snow spots. 1819Byron Juan ii. cxxi, Her small snow feet had slippers, but no stocking. 1879G. M. Hopkins Poems (1967) 80 If a wuthering of his palmy snow-pinions scatter a colossal smile Off him.
d. Cookery. (Cf. 5 a.)
1861Mrs. Beeton Bk. Househ. Managem. 747 Snow eggs,..4 eggs, 3/4 pint of milk,..sugar..vanilla, lemon⁓rind. Ibid. 864 Snow cake{ddd}½ lb. of tous-les-mois, 1/4 lb. of..sugar, 1/4 lb. of..butter, 1 egg,..1 lemon. 1877Cassell's Dict. Cookery 887 Snow Cake... Snow Cheese... Snow Cocoa-nut [etc.]. 1894Westm. Gaz. 30 May 8/2 Recipe for Snow Eggs.
9. Comb.
a. With pa. pples. (chiefly with instrumental force), as snow-backed, snow-beaten, snow-blanched, snow-blown, snow-born, snow-bound, snow-choked, snow-cooled, snow-dazed, snow-dimmed, snow-drowned, snow-fed, snow-hooded, snow-packed, snow-shouldered, etc., or in parasynthetic combs., as snow-bearded, snow-blanketed, snow-bowered, snow-capped, snow-coloured, snow-crested, snow-suited, etc. Also snow-rub, snow-swathe vbs.
1897Kipling Five Nations (1903) 18 While thick around the homestead Our *snow-backed leaders graze.
c1745Armstrong Misc. (1770) I. 150 Thro' the *snow-barricadoed cottage door.
1827G. Darley Sylvia 7 The *snow-bearded tenant of a wilderness.
1836–48B. D. Walsh Aristoph., Clouds i. iii, On the *snow-beaten peak Of Olympus.
1800J. Hurdis Favourite Village 118 Isles desolate and horrid, *snow-besprent.
1855Longfellow Hiaw. ii. 192 From his *snow-besprinkled tresses.
1945W. de la Mare Burning-Glass 23 The *snow⁓blanched sunshine.
1971R. Dentry Encounter at Kharmel ix. 151 The *snow-blanketed hills.
1866Whittier Snow-Bound 118 The sun, a *snow-blown traveller, sank From sight.
1879I. L. Bird Lady's Life in Rocky Mountains vii. 97 From this side rise, *snow-born, the bright St. Vrain, and the Big and Little Thompson. 1930R. Campbell Adamastor 62 Fair siren of the snow-born lake.
1814Byron in L. Hunt Autobiogr. (1850) II. 318, I have been *snow-bound..for nearly a month. 1894Gladstone Odes of Horace ii. ix. 20 'Mid snow-bound mountains of the Medes.
1919W. de la Mare Flora 42 Still from the *snow-bowered, link-lit street The muffled hooves of horses beat.
1797Tweddell Rem. xxvii. (1815) 150 All the *snow-capt hills of the canton of Berne. 1879Wallace Australasia xii. 242 Its higher mountains are snow-capped.
1857Emerson Poems 62 Wading in the *snow-choked wood.
c1580in P. M. Barnard's Catal. No. 30 (1909) 12 Thy trumpet..and thy *snow colourd swan.
1920R. Graves Country Sentiment 63 Or toys or meat or *snow-cooled drink.
1649G. Daniel Trinarch., Hen. IV, cxxxix, Soe may Thessalia..Envy the still *Snow-Couer'd Rhodope. 1856Kane Arctic Explor. II. xxii. 218 Emerging from the snow-covered roof.
1834J. Phillips in Encycl. Metrop. (1845) VI. 705/2 The *snow-crested Alps. 1860Tyndall Glac. i. xvi. 106 Those glorious mountains,..snow-crested and star-gemmed.
1603Drayton Bar. Wars vi. lxiv, From the *snow-crown'd Skidos lofty cleeues. 1832G. Downes Lett. Cont. Countries I. 99 This fine chain of snow-crowned Alps.
a1918W. Owen Poems (1963) 48 We cringe in holes, back on forgotten dreams, and stare, *snow-dazed, deep into grassier ditches.
1957Blunden Poems of Many Years 295 In *snow-dimmed moonlight.
1854J. S. C. Abbott Napoleon (1855) II. i. 14 The deficiency of accommodation for travelers on those bleak and *snow-drifted heights.
1616J. Lane Contn. Sqr.'s T. vii. 225 A plume of *snowe-drivn white.
1776Ann. Reg. 115 *Snow-drowned fields, obstructed roads. 1978G. Greene Human Factor vi. ii. 322 Outside the silence of the snow-drowned street was so extreme that Castle hesitated to break it.
1808Scott Marm. v. Introd., Our *snow-encircled home.
1596C. Fitzgeffrey Sir F. Drake (1881) 76 *Snowe-feath'red swan, the Nestor of the West.
1726–46Thomson Winter 995 A thousand *snow-fed torrents. 1820Shelley Prometh. Unb. i. 120 Rock-embosomed lawns, and snow-fed streams. 1936R. Campbell Mithraic Emblems 31 The lily-scented blood, the snow-fed wine of scarlet stain. 1963Times 6 Feb. (New Zealand Suppl.) p. vii/3 The Rangitata itself—snow-fed and treacherous.
1818Bucke Italians iii. ii, The *snow-hair'd sire shall recognize his son.
1880‘Mark Twain’ Tramp Abroad xxv. 245 The stately border of *snow-hooded mountain peaks. 1945W. de la Mare Burning-Glass 44 A moth, snow-hooded, delicate past belief.
1866Whittier Snow-Bound 99 Woods of *snow-hung oak.
1808Scott Marm. v. Introd., Carriers' *snow-impeded wains.
1850Marg. Fuller Wom. 19th C. (1862) 312 That..freezing, *snow-laden winter.
1642H. More Song of Soul ii. App. 99 *Snow-limb'd, rose-cheek'd. 1855Tennyson Maud i. xviii. iii, Shadowing the snow-limb'd Eve.
1856Kane Arctic Explor. II. vii. 80 After a walk over a heavy *snow-lined country of thirty miles.
1820Shelley Prometheus Unbound i. 434 Yon huge *snow-loaded cedar.
1798Miss H. M. Williams Tour Switzerland II. App. 292 The modest, *snow-mantled nymphs. 1884Manch. Exam. 2 Sept. 5/1 As the ball..is rolled over the snow-mantled earth.
1593Nashe Christ's T. Wks. (Grosart) IV. 113 His pure *snow-molded soft fleshe.
1973J. M. White Garden Game 188 Teague drove his Mercedes..on to the *snow-packed verge.
1593Nashe Christ's T. Wks. (Grosart) IV. 207 Theyr heads, with theyr..*Snow-resembled siluer curlings.
1839–52Bailey Festus 140 Thine are the *snow-robed mountains circling earth.
1853Kane Grinnell Exped. xxxiv. (1856) 306 The crew have been *snow-rubbing their blankets.
1885Black White Heather iii, A large and fleecy cloud that clung around the *snow-scarred peak.
1921W. de la Mare Veil 59 Snake-haired, *snow-shouldered, pure as flame and dew. 1936R. Campbell Mithraic Emblems 17 Each great snow⁓shouldered beast.
1898Edinb. Rev. Jan. 55 On the *snow-sprinkled braes of Yarrow.
1961‘E. Lathen’ Banking on Death (1962) ix. 71 *Snowsuited toddlers frolicking merrily in the snow. 1971A. Bailey In Village (1972) xix. 189 Snow⁓suited small children.
1843Browning Return of Druses ii, Dost thou *snow-swathe thee kinglier, Lebanon, Than in my dreams?
1804Europ. Mag. XLV. 63/2 While, with *snow-tipp'd feet, The..waves she sports among. 1883F. S. Renwick Betrayed 36 One snow-tipped..feather graced his hair.
1596Drayton Bar. Wars vi. lxiv, From *snow-topd Skidos frostie cleeues. c1750Johnson Ode Winter 12 The snow topt cot, the frozen rill. 1823Clissold Ascent Mt. Blanc 23 The snow-topped Apennines.
1879Browning Ivan Ivanovitch 33 A village,..*Snow-whitened everywhere except the middle road.
1606Sylvester Du Bartas ii. iv. ii. Magnificence 1073 O how I love thee, My *Snow-winged Dove!
1729Savage Wanderer i. 55 His Robe *snow-wrought, and hoar'd with Age.
b. Objective, etc., with vbl. ns. and pres. pples., as snow-casting, snow-clearing, snow-dropping, etc., or with agent-nouns, as snow-blower, snow-breaker, snow-clearer, snow-gatherer, snow-loader, snow-melter, snow-scraper, snow-shifter, snow-thrower, etc.
(a)
1542Udall Erasm. Apoph. (1877) 243 The *snowe casting season nowe coming in place.
1894Westm. Gaz. 10 Jan. 5/1 He was in charge of the *snow-clearing party.
1838J. Pardoe River & Desert II. 44 The majestic tamarind tree overshadowed the *snow-dropping acacia.
1849J. Forbes Physician's Holiday viii. (1850) 75 The waters..overflowed their banks during the *snow-melting season.
1757Dyer Fleece iv. 466 White Imaus, whose *snow-nodding crags Frighten the realms beneath.
1616Drummond of Hawthornden Poems A iv b, *Snow-passing Iuorie that the Eye delights.
1858Simmonds Dict. Trade, *Snow-sweeping Engine, a plough or other contrivance for removing snow from railways and common roads. 1892Daily News 21 Nov. 5/5 Matters..have reached such a point that snow-sweeping is the one harvest they hope for.
(b)
1955Hamilton (Ontario) Spectator 25 Jan. 24/3 Street sweepers, *snow blowers, and other city equipment stored outdoors at the Elgin Street yard. 1964S. Forbes Long Hate (1966) x. 92 ‘We'll have to shovel, I guess.’.. ‘Can't you use the snow blower?’ 1978Daily Tel. 1 Feb. 1/7 Extra snow-clearing equipment was being sent to the area and the RAF was bringing in a large snowblower from Switzerland.
1791Young's Annals Agric. XVI. 431 The sheep are often obliged to procure their food by scraping the snow off the ground with their feet..; hence they have obtained the name of *snow-breakers.
1963Times 18 Feb. 4/1 The efforts of dedicated Kingsholm *snow-clearers were rewarded, and the surface was unbelievably good in the circumstances.
Ibid. 28 Jan. 9/6 Clearing is done by a continuous moving belt operation with a plough in front followed by a specially built *snow loader which digs into drifts with rotating blades and funnels it into a line of waiting lorries.
1856Kane Arctic Explor. I. xxxi. 424 To reduce our effete *snow-melter to its elements. 1974Globe & Mail (Toronto) 12 Feb. 5/3 The combined snow loader and melter was designed by Metro roads department and consultants after testing a small 75-ton snow melter during the past three winters.
1851in H. Greeley Recoll. Busy Life (1868) 559 We met with a bad accident..45 miles from Baltimore, our *snow-scraper catching against some part of the track. 1884Knight Dict. Mech. Suppl. 826/2 Snow Scraper.
1962*Snow-shifter [see Mack n.6].
1891C. Roberts Adrift Amer. 114 Two snow ploughs, and a gang of 75 *snow shovellers.
1875Knight Dict. Mech. 2231/2 *Snow-sweeper, a vehicle or apparatus adapted for removing snow from paved streets.
1966Wall St. Jrnl. 28 Dec. 1/4 The power⁓driven snowblower (or *snowthrower, if you prefer), a gadget with reel-type blades that chew through the snow and push it into a chute, from whence it's blown aside. 1978Detroit Free Press 16 Apr. (Gardening Guide) 6 (Advt.), Attachments include 60-inch rotary mower, 48-inch snow thrower, [etc.].
c. With adjs., chiefly in the sense of ‘as or like snow’, as snow-bright, snow-brilliant, snow-clear, snow-cool, snow-deep, snow-fair, snow-proof, snow-soft, etc.
1572Bossewell's Armorie Prelim. Verses, Whose *snow⁓bright skil by snow procurde the Fates to hast thy fate. 1817Shelley Rev. Islam xii. xli, I saw its marge of snow⁓bright mountains rear Their peaks aloft.
1853F. W. Newman Odes of Horace 148 The slave Briséis With hue *snowbrilliant.
1925E. Sitwell et al. Poor Young People 15 Or peck Anne's *snow-clear cheek.
1919R. Graves Treasure Box 11 Where Sweetheart, my brown mare,..May loll her leathern tongue In *snow-cool water. 1964J. Michie tr. Horace's Odes i. xii. 41 The snow-cool shoulder Of Haemus.
1799[A. Young] Agric. Linc. 328 Mr. Hyde seldom corn feeds, unless turnips are rotten or *snow deep. 1920T. S. Eliot Ara Vos Prec 25 Buried beneath some snow-deep Alps.
1895Nutt in Meyer Voy. Bran I. 176 *Snowfair the bodies from top to toe.
1818Keats Endym. ii. 79 Some *snow⁓light cadences Melting to silence.
1972‘M. Yorke’ Silent Witness ii. 26 A small figure lightly encased in *snow⁓proof garments. 1978J. Cowley in Islands (N.Z.) Aug. 25 Padded nylon windbreakers and snow-proof pants.
1841Browning Pippa Passes Poems (1905) 166 One flash Of the pale, *snow-pure cheek and black bright tresses.
1596W. Smith Chloris (1877) 8 Tripping vpon the *snowe soft downes I spide Three nimphs. 1625Milton Death Fair Infant 19 Down he descended from his Snow-soft chaire. 1924E. Sitwell Sleeping Beauty xvi. 54 Far from *snow-soft sleep. 1959E. Pound Thrones civ. 92 The small breasts snow-soft over tripod.
1867Gilfillan Night i. 12 With the *Snow-still foot of thought.
10. a. Special combs.: snow-belt U.S. [belt n. 5 a], a region subject to heavy snowfalls; also attrib.; snow-blanket, -blink (see quots.); † snow-blossom, a snowflake; snow-bones dial. (see quots.); snow-break, (a) a rush of loose or melting snow; (b) a narrow strip of forest serving as a protection against snow; (c) the breaking of trees by the weight of snow; an area over which this happens; snow-bucking U.S., the action of forcing a railway-train through a snow-drift; snow bunny N. Amer. slang, an inexperienced (usu. female) skier; a pretty girl who frequents ski slopes; snow-cone U.S. (see quot. 1969); also attrib.; snow course, a line along which the depth of snow is periodically sampled at fixed points; snow-craft, the art of traversing or dealing with snow in mountaineering; snow-creep, the gradual movement of snow down a slope; snow-cripple, a tree injured by the weight or pressure of snow; snow cruiser N. Amer., a motor vehicle designed to travel over snow; spec. (with capital initials) a Canadian proprietary term for a type of motorized toboggan; also attrib.; hence snow-cruising vbl. n.; also attrib.; snow devil, a column of snow whirled round by the wind (cf. devil n. 11); snow-dropper Cant, = snow-gatherer (Slang Dict. 1864); snow-dropping Cant, (see quots.); also as gerund; snow-eater Meteorol. [tr. G. schneefresser], a warm wind, esp. a föhn, that causes rapid melting of snow; † snow-fire (see quot.); snow-foot, (a) an accumulation of snow at the foot of steep Arctic sea-coasts; (b) a foot adapted for walking on snow; snow-gatherer Cant (see quot.); snow grain Meteorol., a small, opaque, precipitated ice particle, usu. flattened and less than 1 mm. in diameter, that does not bounce on a hard surface; cf. snow pellet below; snow gun U.S. = snow-maker; snow-hole, (a) a hole or opening in the burner of a pyrites kiln; (b) a hole in snow used as a temporary shelter; snow-house, (a) a house in which snow is preserved in warm weather; (b) a house or hut built of snow; snow job slang (orig. U.S.), a concerted attempt at flattery, deception, or persuasion; also attrib.; hence snow-job v. trans., to do a snow job on (someone); snow-jobbing vbl. n., the performing of a snow job; snow-limit, the limit (towards the equator) for the fall of snow at sea-level; snow machine N. Amer., a motor vehicle designed to travel over snow; also attrib.; snow-maker (orig. U.S.) a device used for the artificial production of a snow-like precipitate for ski-slopes and the like; also, one who makes snow by the use of such a device; so snow-making vbl. n. and ppl. a.; snow-melt, the melting of fallen snow; also, the water that results; snow-merchant, one who deals in snow (for cooling purposes); snowpack U.S., lying snow that is compressed and hardened by its own weight; snow pellet Meteorol., an opaque precipitated ice particle, usu. a few millimetres in diameter, that will bounce on a hard surface; a soft hailstone; cf. snow grain above; snow plane N. Amer., a type of snowmobile that is mounted on skis and propelled by an engine-driven propeller; Snow Queen, the chief character in a fairy-tale of this name by Hans Christian Andersen, used allusively to designate a cold-hearted woman; also attrib.; snow-raking N.Z. (see quots.); snow roller, a cylinder of snow formed by the action of the wind rolling it along; snow-scape, a snow scene, a landscape covered with snow; snow scene, a landscape covered with snow; snow-sheen, = snow-blink; snow-skiing vbl. n. = ski-ing vbl. n. 1, opp. to water-skiing; so snow-ski v. intr.; snow-skier; snow-sleep, a somnolent condition induced by walking in snow; so snow-sleepiness; snow-snake(s) N. Amer., ‘an Indian game played with a straight wooden rod having a weighted head resembling that of a snake, this rod being slid over a smooth field of snow or down specially constructed runways; the rod used in this game’ (Dict. Canad.); hence snow-snaking; snow-sports, sports that take place on snow, spec. skiing; also attrib.; † snow-stone (see quot.); snow-tan, a tanned complexion produced by exposure to snow; snow-time, the time of snow, winter.
1874Los Angeles County Ten Thousand Questions Answered 11/1 There are two great continental railroad routes within the *snowbelt. 1933Amer. City Sept. 53/1 Old-fashioned winters have not been as prevalent in the snow belt in the last few years as they were ten or twenty years ago. 1967Wall St. Jrnl. 1 Feb. 1/4 Some makers predict snowmobile sales soon will surpass boat sales in snowbelt states. 1981Nordic Skiing Jan. 39/1 Thanks to a 120–140 inch snowbelt location, Temple Mountain offers skiing from early December to mid-April.
1863D. Page Introd. Text-bk. Phys. Geogr. 154 In the higher latitudes,..snow forms a warm covering for the soil (the *snow-blanket, as it is termed by farmers).
Ibid., Within the polar circle, also, the darkness of the long winter is..diminished by the snow-sheen or *snow-blink.
1676Phil. Trans. XI. 734 As hard..as to shew a specifical difference betwixt several *Snow-blossoms.
a1800Pegge Suppl. Grose, *Snow-bones, remnants of snow after a thaw. 1862C. C. Robinson Dial. Leeds 416 Snow-bones, the patches of snow seen stretching along ridges, in ruts, or in furrows, &c., after a partial thaw.
1837Carlyle Fr. Rev. i. vii. iv, And so, like *snowbreak from the mountains,..it storms. 1895W. R. Fisher tr. Hess's Forest Protection 482 The term snow⁓break is used to denote the breakage of stems or branches. 1905Terms Forestry (U.S. Dept. Agric. Bureau Forestry) 21 Snowbreak. 1. The breaking of trees by snow. 2. An area on which trees have been broken by snow. 3. Shelterbelt. 1928R. S. Troup Silvicultural Systems v. 70 Its uneven-aged condition up to the pole stage is considered to be a protection against both snowbreak and sliding snow on steep hill-sides. 1933Forestry VII. 146 In spite of the relatively high elevation there was no indication of snowbreak.
1885Longman's Mag. Feb. 422 ‘*Snow Bucking’ in the Rocky Mountains.
1953P. C. Berg Dict. New Words in Eng. 147/2 *Snow bunny,..n. Skiing. A beginner, esp. a girl. 1964Star Weekly (Toronto) 19 Dec. 39/1 December used to be a dull month, but that was before our pretty Canadian snow bunnies..started brightening up the Canadian snow scene. 1968Globe & Mail (Toronto) 13 Jan. 49/6 ‘Watching you for only two runs, I can see you're not just a ‘snow bunny’, Coral!’ ‘No, I was on the women's ski-team at college.’ 1972P. A. Whitney Snowfire (1973) vi. 100 Snow bunny..was a term applied to beginners, usually female, who haunted the slopes.
1969Daily Tel. 6 June 18 A *snowcone is a paper cup of flavoured shaved ice, highly popular among children. 1976Billings (Montana) Gaz. 4 July 2-b/4 The Jolly Wagons had competition in those days from a snow⁓cone vendor driving an identical Cushman which contained only ice and flavored syrups.
1933Geogr. Rev. XXIII. 540 It was only necessary to maintain a series of measurements carefully taken in the same spot each year. These measurements, laid out at definite intervals.., were named ‘*snow courses’. 1965R. G. Kazmann Mod. Hydrol. ii. 36 This type of measurement, made at frequent intervals over very elaborately organized snow courses..is the accepted practical method of measuring solid-state precipitation.
1892C. T. Dent Mountaineering 217 *Snowcraft consists largely in the avoidance of difficulties and dangers. 1902Encycl. Brit. XXXI. 23 It [mountaineering] consists of two main divisions, rock-craft and snow-craft.
1908Science 28 Feb. 339 Small trees are directly broken and abraded by weight of snow or by *snow creep.
Ibid., *Snow-cripples possess the spire-form, with flourishing upper shoots, but the lower branches and foliage are dying or dead.
1939Sun (Baltimore) 14 Nov. 11/3 A twenty-seven-ton *snow cruiser..designed to serve as an igloo on wheels to help the forces inspect vast areas of unexplored ice and snow. 1956Canad. Trade Mark 102,409 13 Jan., Wares: Small engine driven snow remover. Trade Mark: Snow-Cruiser. 1966Canad. Geogr. Jrnl. Sept. 79/3 Outboard Marine makes..Snow Cruiser..a small motorized toboggan on rubber tires and skis, a variation of the original snowmobile invented by Armand Bombardier of Quebec ten years ago. 1969Sears Catal. Spring/Summer 14 A tent of this type would be ideal for sportsmen, hunters and Snowcruiser enthusiasts.
1966British Columbia Digest Dec. 10 (Advt.), '67 is the big year for *snow cruising..and you have 3 fabulous OMC Snow Cruisers to choose from! 1968Globe & Mail (Toronto) 15 Jan. 24/3 (Advt.), Wonderful snow-cruising parklands.
1932F. S. Smythe Kamet Conquered xii. 169 From the serene skyline of Meade's Col little ‘*snow devils’ were rising against the deepening green of the evening sky. 1962W. H. Murray Maelstrom xiv. 183 Whirling snow-devils came charging across the plateau, driving spiculae in their faces.
1847G. W. M. Reynolds Mysteries of London III. xxix. 85/1 A stranger looked like a *snow-dropper. 1963T. & P. Morris Pentonville viii. 190 The larcenist who steals feminine underwear from clothes⁓lines (the ‘snowdropper’) is often a pathetic object of derision and contempt. 1977Western Mail (Cardiff) 5 Mar. 8/1 A ‘snowdropper’ is a man who steals women's underwear.
1839Slang Dict. 34 *Snow-dropping, stealing linen off a hedge. 1882Sydney Slang Dict. 9/2 Dick's a broker and has gone out snow-dropping. 1930[see cattle-duffing s.v. cattle 9]. 1967Telegraph (Brisbane) 1 Mar. 26/4 Patfield had set out last November to steal sheets, but in the most systematic manner of ‘snow dropping’ (clothes⁓line thefts) he had stolen everything he could find. 1972Observer 31 Dec. 3/4 He couldn't resist the temptation to go ‘snow dropping’ (stealing clothes from lines).
1886Science 12 Mar. 242/2 Warm west winds answering to the ‘Chinook’ winds occur as far south as southern Colorado, though I have seldom heard the name ‘Chinook’ applied to them in this region. They are here [sc. in Colorado Springs] often called Pacific winds, also ‘*snow-eaters’ and ‘zephyrs’. 1933F. H. Cheley Camping Out 197 It was the Chinook wind... The Indians call it the ‘snow eater’. 1967R. W. Fairbridge Encycl. Atmospheric Sci. & Astrogeol. 1151/2 The rapid melting of the snow caused by the chinook (‘Snow-eater’) is welcomed because it frees the higher pastures.
1771J. R. Forster tr. Kalm's Trav. II. 81 We observed a meteor, commonly called a *snow-fire. [Note.] Probably nothing but an Aurora borealis.
1881tr. Nordenskiöld's Voy. Vega I. ii. 75 A steep escarpment..below which there is formed during the course of the winter an immense snow-drift or so-called ‘*snow-foot’. 1905Westm. Gaz. 11 Mar. 4/2 This peculiarity of ‘snow-feet’ is not so well marked as in the reindeer or caribou.
1859Slang Dict. 97 *Snow gatherers, rogues who steal linen from hedges and lines.
1944H. R. Byers Gen. Meteorol. vi. 125 Granular snow, *snow grains... White, opaque, snow⁓like grains, similar to soft hail but more or less flattened or oblong. 1967R. W. Fairbridge Encycl. Atmospheric Sci. & Astrogeol. 772/1 Snow grains..neither bounce nor break when hitting the ground.
1971Industr. & Engin. Chem. (Process Design & Devel.) Jan. 75/1 To cover a bare ski slope, 10 to 15 commercial *snow guns (nozzles in which water and air are combined, usually at 100 psig) are used. 1974Compressed Air Apr. 9/1 The snow-guns are ‘very efficient, inexpensive and can be moved easily’.
1880J. Lomas Alkali Trade 48 So adjusted..that..the tongues of flame just show a decided direction towards the exit, or ‘*snow’ hole. 1953P. Provencher I live in Woods vii. 64 To make a snow hole, dig to a depth of five feet at the foot of a steep incline or cliff. 1965B. E. Freeman tr. Vandel's Biospeleology xiii. 195 Nivicoles, the inhabitants of snow⁓holes. 1978Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 7 May 7/8 The six men and three women spent..three nights in snow⁓holes—man-made snow caves—before reaching..the summit.
1662J. Davies tr. Olearius' Voy. Amb. 303 Having made as much [ice] as they desire, they..put it up into *Snow-Houses, whereof there are so many at Ispahan. 1827J. Holmes Hist. United Brethren ii. (ed. 2) 80 The Esquimaux now began to build a snow-house, about thirty paces from the beach. 1881Geikie Prehistoric Europe 19 He may even have occupied temporary snow-houses, like those made by the Eskimo.
1943Amer. Mercury Nov. 555 There he tries a *snow job on her (hands her a line) and if she falls for it she's been snowed under. 1953K. Tennant Joyful Condemned xx. 192 He..made a bee-line for the red-head. ‘Now for the snow job,’ Geechi murmured. 1962‘K. Orvis’ Damned & Destroyed xxi. 155 Are you going to snow-job me about finding substitutes? 1966S. Morrow Moonlighters (1967) v. 53 Possibly her scepticism accounted for her success with the teenagers{ddd}kids were most apt to trust the adults who were immune to a snow job. 1969C. Burke God is Beautiful, Man (1970) 52 It's better to say yes or no and mean it—than to give a lot of snow job promises anyway. 1979D. Robinson Eldorado Network xliii. 291, I just saw you do another snow job. You were in North Wales..which is why it sounds so convincing. Nice try, Luis.
1966National Observer (U.S.) 19 Dec. 12/2 Democratic county chairmen hereabouts have, of necessity, worked out a terrific combination of railroading, arm twisting, and *snow jobbing, not necessarily involving consent or persuasion.
1973Whig-Standard (Kingston, Ontario) 14 Jan. 15/7 Roads are not for snowmobiles—the *snow machines and other vehicles using the highways simply do not mix. 1976News Miner (Fairbanks, Alaska) 6 Nov. b17/2 Snow machine driving, in which participants may cross miles of wintry terrain on a weekend outing. 1977New Yorker 4 July 42/1 Their snow machine—Ski-Doo Alpine—rests on the floor below the furs. It goes ten miles an hour on the trail, and the two of them ride it.
1955N.Y. Times 30 Jan. ii. 31/4 The *snow makers provided a long-needed answer on how to cope with the snowless situation..in the Southern Catskills. 1963Engineering 13 Sept. 321/3 Snow-makers mix air and water under pressure and blow the resulting mixture in dense 50 ft arcs. 1965Economist 25 Dec. 1416/1 While the rainmakers have been failing, for a decade or more the snowmakers have been succeeding beyond their wildest dreams and as a result..more American skiers than ever are assured of at least enough snow to try out the new skis which they have been given for Christmas. 1980J. Krantz Princess Daisy xxvi. 461 The snow-making machines had started... The snow⁓makers continued to cover the path.
1954U.S. Pat. 2,676,471 7 At an ambient temperature of 31°F and less, snow has been made at any pressure from 25 to 200 lbs. per square inch by varying the water pressure to give a *snow making mixture. 1956Compressed Air Mag. LXI. 101/3 Snow-making at Fahnestock consists..of bringing compressed air and water together at a nozzle that acts in the same manner as a paint spray gun. 1960N.Y. Herald-Tribune 13 Nov. vii. 8/1 Across the country..dozens of snow-making machines are poised, ready to transform bare hillsides into Alpine paradises. 1976‘A. Cross’ Question of Max i. 8 There is a damn snow⁓making machine on some blasted ski slope.
1927Q. Jrnl. Geol. Soc. LXXXIII. 167 We arrived just as the spring *snow-melt was finishing. 1941Yearbk. Agric. 1941 (U.S.) 560 In cleared areas snow depths are intermediate..and snow melt is rapid. 1971W. Hillen Blackwater River ii. 16 Snowmelt starting to run from exposed mountain slopes. 1979Field 17 Oct. 1048/3 So far as rainfall is concerned,..the total amount of this element..in meteorological records includes snowmelt.
1705Addison Italy Wks. 1721 II. 84 The Banditti..often put the *Snow-merchants under contribution.
1952Trans. Amer. Geophysical Union XXXIII. 874 The water equivalent of the seasonal *snow pack was observed after individual falls. 1955Sci. News Let. 1 Oct. 214/3 Winter snowpack is the source of 40% of California's streamflow. 1973R. Hayes Hungarian Game xxxvi. 215 Beneath the thin, brittle crust there was an inch of powder before the snowpack.
1935Jrnl. Faculty Sci. Hokkaido Imp. Univ. 2nd Ser. I. 215 The *snow pellet or the graupel..is one of the modified forms of snow crystal. 1967R. W. Fairbridge Encycl. Atmospheric Sci. & Astrogeol. 442/2 Small hail, under 5 mm, is officially classified as ice pellets or snow pellets.
1953R. Moon This is Saskatchewan ii. 9 Bob Fudge's manufacturing is not confined to *snow planes. 1967E. B. Nickerson Kayaks to Arctic xix. 186 He had a snow plane—an enclosed cabin on ski runners shoved along by an aeroplane propeller in the fashion of an Everglades swamp buggy. 1972T. McHugh Time of Buffalo xii. 145 We rented two snowplanes for a trip into the snow-bound heartland of Yellowstone Park.
1935Marsh & Jellett Nursing-Home Murder vi. 75 A very cold fishy sort of lady... A *Snow Queen, in fact. 1974L. Deighton Spy Story xi. 111 She gave me the inscrutable Snow-queen smile. 1977N.Y. Rev. Bks. 27 Oct. 14 Charlotte was a Snow Queen who flirted coldly and shamelessly with her son.
1919N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. 20 Feb. 90 After a heavy snowfall..send out as many men as can be got together..to get the sheep on to the sunny faces, where a certain amount of thaw may have taken place... This is what is generally known as ‘*snow-raking’. 1958J. Pascoe N.Z. Sheep-Station in People of World 1st Ser. 19 Then the men must stamp out a trail through the snow—a job called ‘snow-raking’—and lead the sheep down to the valley flats.
1866G. J. Symons British Rainfall, 1865 p. vii, *Snow Rollers... The snow ripples up.., and the ripples breaking into sections, the wind rolls each..until, just like a..snow-ball, they rapidly increase in size. 1876Meteorol. Mag. XI. 52 This is the first instance recorded of the formation of ‘Snow Rollers’ in England. 1959Weatherwise XII. 63/2 The area cleared of snow during the formation of snow rollers is usually V-shaped, accounting for their peculiar shape, which is cylindrical with concave ends.
1886Christian Leader 17 June, Charmed by the beauty of the *snow-scape, with the feathery flakes clinging to the twigs. 1891Atkinson Moorland Par. 372 The unaccustomed eye is fairly bewildered with the strange pale beauty of the snow-scape.
1836H. C. Robinson Diary 15 Jan. (1967) 152, I found a *snow scene quite pleasant in this mountainous country. 1921R. Fry Let. 14 Dec. (1972) II. 518 A stupendous Courbet snow scene. 1978‘L. Black’ Foursome i. 6 It was incongruous against the background of..correspondence files..stacks of catalogues, the snow-scene on the calendar.
1975New Yorker 1 Sept. 28/1 You don't play tennis, you don't *snow-ski, you don't water-ski, you don't ride a bicycle... Albert, we have nothing in common.
1941Life 4 Aug. 55/2 (caption) Bending her knees like a *snow skier, Hallie rides over the wake. Ibid. 54 Combining aquaplaning and *snow skiing, water-skiing was imported from the Riviera several years ago. 1977Chicago Tribune 2 Oct. xii. 33/3 (Advt.), We're looking for a bright, enthusiastic gal, who knows the retail clothing business, especially snow skiing attire.
1901Wide World Mag. VI. 456/2 He had been overcome by that worst of all enemies to the Australian Alpine traveller—*snow-sleep.
1896Merriman Sowers xxxii, It was quite dark,..and I had *snow-sleepiness.
1844Chambers's Edin. Jrnl. I. 327 They [sc. Cherokee Indians]..in winter amuse themselves with their *snow-snakes, which are long smooth sticks of hard wood..which they send to an extraordinary distance over the smooth surface of the snow. 1888Trans. R. Soc. Canada VI. ii. 44 If this is the game spoken of by other writers as ‘Snow-snakes’, there is nothing in the [Abenaki] name to so indicate. 1959E. Tunis Indians 56/2 Snow snake was played by all the northern tribes on a level track made by dragging a log or a boy through the snow. 1973M. R. Crowell Greener Pastures 81 The wall photograph..of Indians playing the venerable game of snow⁓snake. 1978Whig-Standard (Kingston, Ontario) 11 Feb. a8/1 The snow snake is a smooth, thin stick about 2m long. It is thrown along a crust of smooth, hard snow. The player whose snake slides the farthest is the winner.
1979Ibid. 1 Feb. 9/1 It is called *snow-snaking and the Mohawk Indians have played it for centuries. It is not recognized at the Canada Winter Games but maybe it will some day.
[1905Country Life Dec. 181 (heading) Practical side of snow and ice sports.] 1966Guardian 15 Oct. 5/2 (Advt.), *Snowsports. 2 weeks including full-board {pstlg}29.15.0! 1974Country Life 3/10 Jan. 52/1 (Advt.), Off⁓season winter rates..for skiers and snow-sports enthusiasts.
1753Chambers' Cycl. Suppl., *Snow⁓stone,..a name given by some to a very beautiful stone found in America; of which the Spaniards are very fond.
1901Wide World Mag. VI. 458/2 Almost unrecognisable from *snow-tan and exposure.
1535Coverdale 2 Sam. xxiii. 20 Benaia..slewe a lyon at a well in the *snowe tyme. 1844Ld. Houghton Palm Leaves, Kiosk ii. 17 In the bleak snow-time, when the winds rung shrill.
b. In names of animals, insects, etc., as snow bear, a buff or brown bear, Ursus arctos isabellinus, found in the Himalayan region; snow-camel, the Bactrian camel, Camelus bactrianus; snow-fish (?); snow-flea, -fly, -gnat, -insect, one or other of several species of small insects frequenting snow (also snow-fly, an artificial fly used in angling); esp. one of the genus Achorutes; snow-leopard, the ounce; snow-mouse (see quots.); snow-panther, the ounce; snow-wolf, a wolf that lives in snowy regions; the (imitation) fur of this animal; snow-worm, a worm frequenting or living among snow; esp. = ice-worm a.
1869A. A. Kinloch Large Game Shooting Thibet & N. West I. xv. 46 The *Snow Bear varies a good deal in size. 1884R. A. Sterndale Nat. Hist. Mammalia India & Ceylon 111 The bear of which we have the oldest record is almost the same as our Indian or Snow Bear. 1910Blackw. Mag. Oct. 433/2 One of them..got three really good heads, and two snow-bears, in one day.
1901Kipling Kim viii. 204 Nor is even a Balkh stallion..of any account in the great Northern deserts beside the *snow⁓camels I have seen.
1833Marryat P. Simple xxix, Not cribbled up like a *snow-fish, chucked out on the ice of the river St. Lawrence.
1850Thoreau Jrnl. 16 Dec. in Writings (1906) VIII. 125 The snow everywhere was covered with *snow-fleas like pepper. 1868Amer. Naturalist II. 53 The little insects called snow-fleas..are found in winter at the foot of trees. 1888Comstock Introd. Entom. 61 Our common snow-flea is Achorutes nivicola. This is sometimes a pest where maple sugar is made, the insects collecting..in the sap. 1943B. Damon Sense of Humus 106 Snow fleas..have a disagreeable habit of putting an end to their brief existence by drowning themselves in sap buckets.
1668Charleton Onomast. 48 Oripæ,..*Snow-Flies. 1867F. Francis Angling x. (1880) 379 There is a singular fly used on the Beauly, which is there termed the Snow Fly. 1879E. P. Wright Anim. Life 491 In America we find that these little creatures [sc. spring-tails] are at this day called snow-flies. 1894Amateur Gardening 3 Mar. 422 The insects..are known as the Cabbage Powder Wing or Snow Flies (Aleyrodes proletella).
1891Cent. Dict. s.v., *Snow-gnat.
Ibid., *Snow-insect.
1866A. Murray Geog. Distrib. Mammals 99 The Ounce or *Snow Leopard represents the Leopard in the high regions of Thibet. 1902T. W. Webber Forests Upper India vi. 54 Prowling snow leopards, white like the weather-beaten rock.
c1880Cassell's Nat. Hist. III. 117 The *Snow Mouse (Arvicola nivalis), lives on the Alps and Pyrenees, at elevations of 4,000 feet and upwards. 1891Cent. Dict., Snow-mouse,..a lemming of arctic America which turns white in winter, Cuniculus torquatus.
1884R. A. Sterndale Mammalia India 184 The Ounce or *Snow Panther.
1910W. de la Mare Three Mulla-Mulgars 192 So brave are these *snow-wolves. 1976Sunday Mail (Glasgow) 28 Nov. 46/1 (Advt.), De luxe heavy pile Silver Mink, Ocelot, Tiger, Snow Wolf, they are beautiful.
1608Topsell Serpents 816 Old snow..will look somewhat dun..: and therefore the *snow-worms are of the same hiew. 1835A. Burnes Trav. Bokhara (ed. 2) III. 209 The most singular phenomenon of nature on Hindoo Koosh appears to be the snow-worm, which is described to resemble the silk-worm in its mature state. 1895Cambridge Nat. Hist., Insects I. 194 The occurrence on snow and glaciers of Insects spoken of as snow-fleas, or snow-worms. 1899H. G. Bryant in Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 134 The snow-worms were first observed a few hundred yards from our first camp. 1916Trans. Amer. Microsc. Soc. XXXV. 102 Nothing definite is known concerning the food of these snow-worms.
c. In names of birds, as snow-cock, a snow-partridge, snow-pheasant, Tetraogallus; snow-flight, the snowflake or snow-bunting (Cent. Dict. 1891); snow-fowl, the snow-bunting; snow-grouse, the ptarmigan; † snow-hammer [ad. G. schneeammer], the snow-finch; † snow-hen, the ptarmigan; snow-lark, ? the snow-finch; snow-owl, the snowy owl; snow-partridge, (a) the snow-pheasant, Tetraogallus; (b) a Himalayan gallinaceous bird, Lerwa nivicola; snow-petrel (see quot. 1905); snow-pheasant (see quots.); snow-pigeon, a pigeon of Northern India and Tibet, Columba leuconota; snow-quail U.S., the white-tailed ptarmigan, Lagopus leucurus; snow-sparrow, any passerine bird of the genus Junco. Also snow-bird, -bunting, -finch, etc.
c1880Cassell's Nat. Hist. IV. 146 The finest representatives of the Partridge are, undoubtedly, the *Snow Cocks or Snow Partridges. 1897Lydekker, etc. Conc. Knowl. Nat. Hist. 232 The snow-cocks, or snow-pheasants.., are the largest of the partridge group.
1813Montagu Ornith. Suppl. s.v. Snow-bunting, *Snow-fowl. Oat-fowl.
1884Coues N. Amer. Birds 585 Lagopus, Ptarmigan. *Snow Grouse. 1888Roosevelt in Cent. Mag. XXXVI. 210 Up above the timber line were snow-grouse and huge, hoary-white woodchucks.
1802–3tr. Pallas's Trav. (1812) I. 52 During the whole of our journey..we were accompanied by small flights of *snow-hammers.
1648Hexham ii, Een sneeuw-hoen,..a *Snowe-hen, or a Shoveler so called because of her w[h]itnesse. 1674tr. Scheffer's Hist. Lapland 138, I call it Lagopus.., the Germans..term it Schnaehuner, i.e. Snow-hens.
1832J. Bree St. Herbert's Isle 48 There never sings the *snow-lark as she soars.
1811A. Wilson Amer. Ornith. Pref. p. xi, *Snow Owl. The largest of his tribe; white, spotted with small brown spots. 1884Coues N. Amer. Birds 510 Nyctea, Snow Owls.
1853Zoologist II. 3861 The great *snow-partridge of Persia. c1880Cassell's Nat. Hist. IV. 146 The Himalayan Snow Partridge (Tetraogallus himalayensis). 1895Lydekker Roy. Nat. Hist. IV. 406 The snow-partridge (Lerwa nivicola), inhabiting the higher Himalayan ranges.
1843Zoologist I. 61 The bird called the *snow petrel by sailors. 1905E. A. Wilson in Capt. Scott Voy. ‘Discovery’ II. App. ii. 483 The Snow petrel (Pagodroma nivea) is perhaps the most beautiful of all the Southern petrels;..it is pure white all over.
1884Encycl. Brit. XVII. 341 Among the birds [in Nepal] are the..*snow pheasant (Tetraogallus himalayensis), snow partridge. 1885Ibid. XVIII. 733 The fine Snow-Pheasants, Crossoptilum—of..which..there are several species. 1902T. W. Webber Forests Upper India xii. 148 A remarkable bird, the snow pheasant or snow cock (Tetraogallus Tibetanus).
1891Cent. Dict., *Snow-pigeon. 1905E. Candler Unveiling of Lhasa iii. 59 Another common bird is the snow-pigeon.
1895W. R. Ogilvie-Grant Game Birds I. 45 In the Rocky Mountain region it is generally known by the very appropriate name of ‘White’ or ‘*Snow’ Quail.
1884Coues N. Amer. Birds 377 Junco, *Snow Sparrows. 1895Times 22 Feb. 3/1 The sight of a snow sparrow, the first of the season.
d. In names of plants or fruits, as snow-apple, a variety of apple (Ash, 1775); snow bush, one or other of various shrubs bearing a profusion of white flowers (Cent. Dict.); esp. the small silvery shrub, Calocephalus brownii, of the family Compositæ, native to Australia; hence snow-bushed adj.; snow-gem, = next (Cent. Dict.); snow glory, a hardy garden-plant of the genus Chionodoxa; snow-grass, one of several coarse grasses of upland regions, esp., in New Zealand, a tussock grass of the genus Danthonia; cf. danthonia; also attrib.; snow gum, a shrub or small tree, Eucalyptus niphophila, with white bark and glaucous leaves, native to high regions of New South Wales; snow lily, a perennial herb, Erythronium grandiflorum, belonging to the family Liliaceæ, native to alpine regions of western North America, and bearing white or yellow flowers; snow-mould (see quot.); snow pea = mange-tout; snow-pear [G. schneebirne], a variety of pear; esp. Pyrus nivalis, which comes into season after snow has fallen; snow plant, (a) a snow-alga; (b) a plant of the Sierra Nevada in California, Sarcodes sanguinea, (see quot. 1905); snow-rose, a species of rhododendron (Cent. Dict.); snow-tree (see quot.).
1909A. E. Mack Bush Calendar 12 Where the trees were fewer, ‘*snow bushes’ grew white. 1965Austral. Encycl. III. 158/1 Snow-bush, a dense and intricately branched shrub..forms large and rounded, white-woolly growths.
1946Dylan Thomas Deaths & Entrances 28 And the dancers move On the departed *snowbushed green.
1887G. Nicholson's Dict. Gardening III. 447/2 *Snow Glory, a common name for Chionodoxa Luciliæ.
1865Reader No. 151. 575/3 The common *snow-grass (Schœnus Pauciflorus). 1875Wood & Lapham Waiting for Mail 31 Tethering my good old horse to a tussock of snow-grass. 1898Morris Austral Eng. 425 Snow-Grass, Poa cæspitosa,..another name for Wiry-grass. 1902Webster's Suppl., Snow grass,..a coarse tall grass (Danthonia Raoulii) of New Zealand. 1906T. F. Cheeseman Man. N.Z. Flora 887 Snow-grass. 1918F. W. Hilgendore Pasture Plants & Pastures N.Z. ii. 42 Snow Grass (Danthonia raoulii).—This is another Tussock, growing 4 to 6 feet high. It has broad leaves shining below, and feathery oat-like heads... Its presence in quantity frequently marks the limit above which it is not safe to carry sheep in winter..as indeed its popular name of Snow Grass would indicate. 1930L. G. D. Acland Early Canterbury Runs 1st Ser. vi. 131 When he was first thatching the cob house..he put the top of each bundle of snow-grass outside the bottom of the one above so that all the rain ran inwards. 1968N.Z. Listener 10 May 10/4 The beast, a young stag, had its antlers hopelessly entangled in the tough-rooted snowgrass. 1972P. Newton Sheep Thief ii. 18 The roof consisting of bare birch rafters with a thick layer of snow grass thatch.
1928‘Brent of Bin Bin’ Up Country xiv. 237 The *snow-gums stood like brides in veils of perfumed lace. 1964D. Stewart in R. Ward Penguin Bk. Austral. Ballads 278 Hard to say where he came from—..out of a hollow snowgum Or out of a granite boulder. 1981Garden CVI. 275/1 There are..very large trees of the Tasmanian snow gum at Inverewe in Ross-shire.
1907S. Brown Alpine Flora of Canadian Rocky Mountains 44 (heading) Erythronium grandiflorum Pursh. *Snow Lily. 1936D. McCowan Animals Canad. Rockies xxix. 250 Great quantities of the bulbs of Snow Lilies. 1972Islander (Victoria, B.C.) 2 Apr. 13/3 The snow lily..pops its bright yellow head out as soon as the snow has left the hill-sides.
1855Ogilvie Suppl., *Snow-mould, a fungous plant, the Lanosa nivalis, which grows beneath snow, on grasses or cereal crops.
1949Nature Mag. XLII. 35/2 The *snow pea..is commonly listed by all large seed-firms as an edible-podded pea. 1956‘E. McBain’ Cop Hater (1958) xx. 172 Chinese vegetables; luscious snow peas, and water chestnuts. 1978Times 17 July 14/3 We had a prolific crop of sugar peas, which the Americans call snow peas.
1860Hogg Fruit Manual 212 *Snow [Pear]. See White Doyenné. 1884De Candolle's Orig. Cultivated Pl. 232 Snow-Pear—Pyrus nivalis. This variety of pear is cultivated in Austria, in the north of Italy, and in..France.
1846Lindley Veg. Kingd. 15 The red and green *Snow-plants, which have been described as Confervæ, and assigned to the genus Protococcus. 1870Old & New Mar. 349/2 The strange snow-plant..must be passed as a railroad traveller passes all things. 1882Garden 18 Feb. 114/3 The Snow Plant of California with its rich colour. 1905A. R. Wallace My Life II. xxxi. 161 The strange Snow plants (Sarcodes sanguinea)..with a dense spike of flowers of a blood-red colour. 1940Oregon: End of Trail 20 Deeper in the forest grow the waxy Indian pipe, the blood-red snow plant, and the rare moccasin flower. 1959Munz & Keck California Flora 436 Snow Plant. Red fleshy usually pubescent saprophyte.
1899Gardening Illustr. 3 June 181/2 The *Snow-tree (Ozothamnus rosmarinifolius).
▸ snow angel n. chiefly N. Amer. an impression in the snow which resembles the conventional representation of an angel, made by lying supine and moving one's arms and legs back and forth in an arc along the ground.
1945Middletown (N.Y.) Times Herald 12 Oct. 4/3 Can you imagine me down on my back in the middle of the sidewalk down in Chelsea Village where I live, flapping my arms to make a *snow angel. 1988M. Atwood Cat's Eye (1994) 166 Cordelia..spreads her arms out in the snow, raises them above her head, draws them down to her sides, making a snow angel.
▸ snow cannon n. a machine which makes artificial snow and blows it onto ski slopes; a snow-maker.
1980N.Y. Times 9 Mar. xxiii. 2/4 Ski Sundown's *snow cannons have been in operation this winter for more than 600 hours at a cost of $100 an hour. 1999Daily Mail Ski & Snowboard Dec. 88/1 There are 58 modern lifts covering over 200km of pistes and served by over 700 snow cannons.
▸ snow day n. U.S. a day on which school is cancelled due to snowfall or other inclement weather; such a cancellation; also in extended use.
1951N.Y. Times 1 Feb. 24/4 Embedded deeply into the routine of the state educational system are a couple of major, red letter events, known as *Snow Days. 1997M. Groening et al. Simpsons: Compl. Guide 101/1 Homer averts a possible snow day by plowing a path for the Springfield Elementary school bus. 2003Wall St. Jrnl. 20 Oct. a3/3 The CDC plan envisions possible quarantines of people exposed to SARS... ‘Snow day’ measures, such as closings of schools and businesses, could be mandated.
▸ snow racer n. N. Amer. a type of small sledge with a steering mechanism.
1985Los Angeles Times 17 Oct. v. 22/2 Say, I like this: the Steering Ski *Snow Racer. It's a little sled on skis on which you sit upright—‘a spring mechanism automatically turns the front ski if you fall off preventing the sled from continuing without you’. 2003Edmonton Sun (Nexis) 29 Jan. 7 With a snowracer loaded on their wagon, and some other snow-conveyances along as well..[they] are geared to go on the snowy hills.
▪ II. snow, n.2|snəʊ|
Also 7–8 snaw.
[ad. Du. snauw, snaauw, or LG. snau (hence Da. and Sw. snau, G. schnau, schnaue, and F. senau), of doubtful origin.]
A small sailing-vessel resembling a brig, carrying a main and fore mast and a supplementary trysail mast close behind the mainmast; formerly employed as a warship.
α1676Lond. Gaz. No. 1079/3 Ostend, March 29. On the 25 instant,..appeared off of this Harbour..two Snaws of four Guns each. 1695Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) III. 441, 28 sail of French ships,..and among them 6 or 8 snaws of 8 or 10 guns each. 1710Ibid. VI. 532 A French snaw, with 33 men and 4 guns.
β1721S. Sewall Diary 14 Apr., A Letter from Capt. Tuthill,..giving me an account of the Arrival of the Snow Anna. 1763Sir S. T. Janssen Smuggling Laid Open 263 A Snow of 120 Tons, and 48 Men,..Mounting 12 Carriage Guns, besides Swivels. 1784Colman Prose on Sev. Occas. (1787) III. 255 Majestick navies in her harbours ride, Skiffs, snows, and frigates anchor by their side. 1810Crabbe Borough i. 52 Far other craft our prouder river shows, Hoys, pinks and sloops; brigs, brigantines and snows. 1846A. Young Naut. Dict. 50 A Brig bends her boom-sail (or..trysail) to the mainmast, while a Snow bends it to a trysail mast: in other respects these two vessels are alike. 1881Clark Russell Ocean Free Lance II. iv. 193 The whole ocean..was covered by..brigs, snows, tartans, schooners, pinks.
attrib. and Comb.1790Beatson Naval & Milit. Mem. II. 183 The James & Thomas tender..was attacked by a large snow privateer. 1860Merc. Mar. Mag. VII. 148 She was a two-masted vessel,..and snow-rigged.
▪ III. snow, v.|snəʊ|
Pa. tense and pple. snowed |snəʊd|. Forms: α. Sc. and north. 4–5 snawe, 5– snaw; 4 snou-, 5–7 snowe (5 -yn), 4– snow. pa. tense and pa. pple. 4, 8– snawed, 9 snaa'd, snaa't; 6– snowed. β. pa. tense 4 sneu, 4– (now dial.) snew, 6 snewe. pa. pple. 5 snawen, 9 dial. snawn; 6 snowen, 9 dial. snown, snewn.
[f. snow n.1, taking the place of OE. sníwan, snew v. Cf. MDu. sneuwen, sn(o)uwen (Du. sneeuwen), LG. sneen, schneen, ON. snjáva, snjóva (Icel. snjóa, Norw. snjoa, snjøa, etc.; Sw. snöga, snöa, Da. sne). The strong conjugation, formerly common, was no doubt due to the influence of blow v.1]
1. intr. it snows, snow falls. Also occas. with snow as subject.
Examples of the strong forms are given under β.
α13..K. Alis. 6450 (Laud MS.), Whan it snoweþ, oiþer rineþ. 1412–20Lydg. Chron. Troy i. 1644 Sche koude make..to hayle and snowe, And frese also. c1425Eng. Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 665 Floctat, snawes... Ningit, snawes. c1440Promp. Parv. 462/1 Snowyn, ningit. 1486Eng. Misc. (Surtees, 1890) 57 And ther schall it snaw by craft, to be made of waffrons in maner of snaw. 1530Palsgr. 724/1 In wynter, whan it snoweth, it is good syttynge by a good fyre. 1592Arden of Feversham v. i, As we went, it snowed al the way. 1638R. Baker tr. Balzac's Lett. (vol. II) 45 Where it is counted for a wonder, that..it was cold or snowed. 1662J. Davies tr. Mandelslo's Trav. 4 Though it were very bad weather, and snow'd all night. 1707Floyer Physic. Pulse-Watch 322 The Barometer sunk to the bottom, it Rain'd and Snow'd. 1772T. Smith Jrnl. (1849) 287 Though it has snowed very often this month, there has been no deep snows. 1841Dickens Barn. Rudge xvi, Glad to hear it rained, or snowed, or blew, or froze. 1864Mrs. Carlyle Lett. III. 237 If it..snows as hard there as here.
βc1330R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 13551 Also þikke as snow þen [v.r. þat] snew, Or al so hail þat stormes blew. 1525Ld. Berners Froiss. II. 342 Also it rayned, blewe, & snewe, that it was a mervaylouse yvell wether. c1540Copland Hye Way to Spyttel Ho. 99 in Hazl. E.P.P. IV. 27 For it had snowen, and frosen very strong. 1586A. Day Eng. Secretary ii. (1625) 80, I had as lieue he told me it snew. 1640E. Dacres tr. Machiavelli's Prince 279 Always and in all seasons, whether it rain'd or snew, he went with his head uncover'd. 1695Wood Life 30 Jan., On T[uesday] the 29 of Jan. it snew all the day. a1800Pegge Suppl. Grose, Snew, the Preterit of snow. York. 1870Verney Lettice Lisle 295 It never snew once last winter. 1877Holderness Gloss. 131/2 It's snawn all way here.
2. To fall, descend, etc., in the manner of snow. Also fig.
a1300Cursor M. 6381 It sneu to þam als it war flur. 1833Tennyson Pal. Art 139 A hundred winters snow'd upon his breast, From cheek and throat and chin. c1860F. W. Faber Hymn, ‘The House of Mourning’ xviii, That unrestful gloom, Where the light snows in. 1894Baring-Gould Queen of Love I. 153 Away shot the cards,..snowing upon the audience in the front rows.
3. a. trans. To let fall as snow; to cause to descend in the manner of snow; to shower down.
a1366Chaucer Rom. Rose 558 Hir throte al so white of hewe, As snawe on braunche snawed newe. 1587Fleming Contn. Holinshed III. 1355 It hailed small confects, rained rosewater, and snew an artificiall kind of snow. 1598Shakes. Merry W. v. v. 22 Let the skie raine Potatoes: let it thunder.., haile kissing Comfits, and snow Eringoes. 1608Chapman Dk. Byron v. iii. 233 As a savage boar..holds his anger up, And snows it forth in foam. 1613Heywood Braz. Age ii. ii. Wks. 1874 III. 192 Where the Boare Hath in his fury snow'd his scattered foame. 1827Scott Chron. Canongate Introd., The theatrical mechanist, who, when the white paper which represented his shower of snow was exhausted, continued the storm by snowing brown. 1847Tennyson Princ. i. 60 He..tore the king's letter, snow'd it down. 1876‘Mark Twain’ Tom Sawyer xvi, A sweep of chilly air passed by,..snowing the flaky ashes broadcast about the fire.
b. In figurative use. Also absol. (quot. 1751).
a1631Donne (J.), 'Till age snow white hairs on thee. 1684N. Lee Constantine ii. 15, I'll stay till Age Has Snow'd a hundred Winters on my Head. 1751Young Nt. Th. v. 602 Time on this head has snow'd. 1878N. Amer. Rev. CXXVI. 166 ‘Snowing’ old inflation speeches over the Eastern states. 1905Sollas Age of Earth iii. 65, [The] Eiffel Tower, snowing post-cards from its summit all over the civilized world.
4. a. To strew or cover with or as with snow. Also transf.
c1400Mandeville (Roxb.) xiv. 65 Waters and maracez..whilk a man may noȝt passe, bot if he hafe riȝt hard frost and þat it be wele snawen abouen. 1635Heywood London's Sinus Salutis 295 Even the Horse,..When the most curb'd, and playing with the bit,..snowes the ground. 1743Francis tr. Hor., Odes iv. xiii. 12 Scar'd at thy Wrinkles,..And Head snow'd o'er with Grey. 1820Shelley Hymn Merc. xciv, Three virgin Sisters, who,..Their heads with flour snowed over white and new, Sit in a vale. 1873Symonds Greek Poets x. 312 Cherry trees and apricots snow the grass in spring with a white wealth of April blossoms. 1887F. Robinson New Religio Medici 133 The mantle..of the Star of India drapes a coffin whose lid is snowed with flowers.
b. fig. To deceive or win over with plausible words; to kid, to dupe. Also with under. slang (orig. and chiefly U.S.).
1943[see snow job s.v. snow n.1 9 a]. 1945D. Dempsey in M. Mayorga Best One-Act Plays of '44 18 Give me the lid, Greenberg..who you tryin' to snow, Lou-i-siana? 1956‘E. S. Aarons’ Assignment Treason (1967) v. 43 Were you snowing me about Hackett doing the clobber job on you? 1963N. Freeling Because of Cats xi. 175, I won't get mad. Just don't snow me with any sob-sister business. 1966H. Waugh Pure Poison (1967) xiv. 87 Roger'd be alone in a corner with some girl and..looked like he was really snowing them. 1980Australian 9 Dec. 6/5 Mr J. C. Moore (the new minister in charge of the Customs Bureau) has taken the most immediate and active interest in the workings of the bureau. Unfortunately, it is most likely that he also will be snowed by the bureaucrats as has been the case with previous ministers.
5. To cause (the hair, etc.) to turn white like snow; to invest with white hair.
1598Sylvester Du Bartas ii. ii. iii. Colonies 761 Thou (tender Mother) will not suffer Age To snow my locks in Forrein Pilgrimage. a1689A. Behn tr. Cowley's Plants C.'s Wks. (Grosart) II. 245 In Youth severe, Before the Winter-Age had snow'd their Hair. 1698Fryer Acc. E. India & P. 275 He is a goodly Reverend Old Man, snowed with Age. 1904Westm. Gaz. 28 Dec. 1/3 Yamagata stays in Tokio,..snowed with seventy years.
6. a. With up. To block, obstruct, incommode, imprison, etc., with snow. Usu. in pa. pple.
1815Jane Austen Emma xiii, I was snowed up at a friend's house once for a week. 1862Sala Seven Sons I. v. 95 News came from the country of trains snowed-up. 1873Smiles Huguen. France (1881) i. iv. 67 He wrote..from some remote place where he was snowed up.
transf.1837Carlyle Fr. Rev. i. iv. i, It is a sheer snowing of pamphlets; like to snow up the Government thorough⁓fares!
b. With under: To bury in snow; fig. to submerge, overwhelm, overpower, etc. Orig. U.S.
1880E. Kirke Garfield 32 Democrats vied with Republicans..in snowing him under with congratulations. 1894United Service Mag. Oct. 28 Mercier was snowed under by a majority greater than had ever been known in Canadian history. 1911Webster s.v., The train was snowed under.
c. To drive out, take away, by means of snow.
1851Mrs. Browning Casa Guidi Wind. i. Wks. (1904) 345 [To] prove that all the winters which have snowed Cannot snow out the scent..Of a sincere man's virtues. 1891W. F. Moulton Let. in Mem. (1899) 247 Every lingering fragment of inflection would be blown, snowed, sleeted, rained and sunned away.
d. With in. To block, imprison with snow. Chiefly N. Amer.
1857G. F. McDougall Eventful Voy. ‘Resolute’ xiii. 331 The fore and after parts of the upper deck were now snowed in, to the depth of nine inches on the starboard side. 1887C. B. George 40 Yrs. on Rail ix. 188 My train was snowed in during one of the terrible storms. 1970Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 1 Jan. 1/3 Picture above taken a year ago as worst blizzard in years blanketed area shows cars snowed-in on King's Road.
7. U.S. slang. To drug, to dope. Also with advbs. Usu. in pa. pple.
1927Amer. Speech Dec. 167/2 Snowed in, dopey, as if full of cocaine. 1934R. Chandler in Black Mask July 70/2 She looked snowed, weaved around funny. 1942Berrey & Van den Bark Amer. Thes. Slang §509/30 Snowed, snowed in, up or under,..under the influence of cocaine. 1956H. Gold Man who was not with It xxiii. 222 But I figured on how to get snowed. |