Meanings
nounsnowstorm (plural snowstorms)
plural snowstorms · alternative snow storm · alternative snow-storm
- Bad weather involving blowing winds and snow, or blowing winds and heavy snowfall amount.
Dined at Melville Castle, whither I went through a snow-storm.
1826 November 28 (date written), Walter Scott, “[Entry dated 28 November 1826]”, in David Douglas, editor, The Journal of Sir Walter Scott […], volume I, Edinburgh: David Douglas, published 1890, →OCLC, page 24Synonyms: blizzard
- A snow globe.
As we made our way down, my eye was caught by a snowstorm—one of those little glass balls, with a baby cottage inside.
1947, Dornford Yates, The Berry Scene, Ward, Lock & Co., 273Synonyms: snowdome, snow globe
Synonyms & antonyms
nounBad weather involving blowing winds and snow, or blowing winds and heavy snowfall amount.
Similar
nounA snow globe.
Similar
More synonyms by meaning
nouna storm with widespread snowfall accompanied by strong winds
Similar
Broader
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From earlier snow-storm, snow storm, equivalent to snow + storm. Compare Scots snawstorm (“snowstorm”), Saterland Frisian Sneestoarm (“snowstorm”), West Frisian sniestoarm (“snowstorm”), Dutch sneeuwstorm (“snowstorm”), German Low German Sneestorm (“snowstorm”), German Schneesturm (“snowstorm”), Danish snestorm (“snowstorm”), Swedish snöstorm (“snowstorm”), Icelandic snjóstormur (“snowstorm”). Compare also Middle English storm of snow (“snowstorm”).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans sneeustorm
- sneeustormbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Ancient Greek νιφετός
- νιφετός (niphetós)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Catalan nevada
- nevadabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Chinese Mandarin 暴風雪 /暴风雪, 大風雪 /大风雪
- 暴風雪 /暴风雪 (bàofēngxuě)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- 大風雪 /大风雪 (dàfēngxuě)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- 雪災 /雪灾 (xuězāi)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Czech blizard, sněhová bouře
- blizardbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- sněhová bouřebad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- sněhová vichřicebad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- vánicebad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- metelicebad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Danish snestorm
- snestormbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Dutch sneeuwstorm
- sneeuwstormbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Esperanto neĝoŝtormo
- neĝoŝtormobad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Finnish lumimyrsky, myräkkä
- lumimyrskybad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- myräkkäbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- pyrybad weather involving blowing winds and snow
French tempête de neige, boule à neige
- tempête de neigebad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- boule à neigesnow globe
German Schneesturm
- Schneesturmbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Greek χιονοθύελλα
- χιονοθύελλα (chionothýella)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Hebrew סופת שלג
- סופת שלגbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Hindi हिमाँधी, हिम आँधी
- हिमाँधी (himāndhī)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- हिम आँधी (him āndhī)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Hungarian hóvihar, hóförgeteg
- hóviharbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- hóförgetegbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Icelandic snjóstormur, stórhríð
- snjóstormurbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- stórhríðbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- kafaldsbylurbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Italian tormenta
- tormentabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Japanese 暴風雪, 吹雪
- 暴風雪 (bōfūsetsu)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- 吹雪 (fubuki)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Korean 눈보라
- 눈보라 (nunbora)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Latin nigor, ningor
- nigorbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- ningorbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Latvian putenis, sniegputenis
- putenisbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- sniegputenisbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Lithuanian pūga
- pūgabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Norwegian snøstorm
- snøstormbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Persian بوران
- بوران (burân)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Polish śnieżyca, zamieć
- śnieżycabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- zamiećbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- zawiejabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- śnieżna kulasnow globe
Portuguese nevasca, nevão
- nevascabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- nevãobad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- tempestade de nevebad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Romanian furtună de nea, furtună de zăpadă
- furtună de neabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- furtună de zăpadăbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- viscolbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- viforbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Russian мете́ль, пурга́
- мете́ль (metélʹ)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- пурга́ (purgá)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- вью́га (vʹjúga)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- бура́н (burán)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- сне́жная бу́ря (snéžnaja búrja)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- снегова́я бу́ря (snegovája búrja)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- сне́жный вихрь (snéžnyj vixrʹ)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Slovak snehová búrka, fujavica
- snehová búrkabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- fujavicabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Spanish nevasca, tormenta de nieve
- nevascabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- tormenta de nievebad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- tormenta níveabad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- tormenta nivalbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- nevazónbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Swedish snöstorm
- snöstormbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Thai พายุหิมะ
- พายุหิมะ (paa-yú-hì-má)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Turkish tipi, kar fırtınası
- tipibad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- kar fırtınasıbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Ukrainian мете́лиця, меті́ль
- мете́лиця (metélycja)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- меті́ль (metílʹ)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- заметі́ль (zametílʹ)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- завірю́ха (zavirjúxa)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- хуртови́на (xurtovýna)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- хурде́лиця (xurdélycja)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- хурте́ча (xurtéča)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- хурди́га (xurdýha)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- ху́га (xúha)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- хугові́й (xuhovíj)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- снігови́ця (snihovýcja)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
- снігові́й (snihovíj)bad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Vietnamese bão tuyết
- bão tuyếtbad weather involving blowing winds and snow
Cite this entry
APA
snowstorm. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/snowstorm
MLA
“snowstorm.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/snowstorm. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “snowstorm,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/snowstorm.
Source: snowstorm on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.