av·a·lanche
Audio Help [av-uh-lanch, -lahnch] Pronunciation Key noun, verb, -lanched, -lanch·ing.
Audio Help [av-uh-lanch, -lahnch] Pronunciation Key noun, verb, -lanched, -lanch·ing. –noun
–verb (used without object)
–verb (used with object)
| 1. | a large mass of snow, ice, etc., detached from a mountain slope and sliding or falling suddenly downward. |
| 2. | anything like an avalanche in suddenness and overwhelming quantity: an avalanche of misfortunes; an avalanche of fan mail. |
| 3. | Also called Townsend avalanche. Physics, Chemistry. a cumulative ionization process in which the ions and electrons of one generation undergo collisions that produce a greater number of ions and electrons in succeeding generations. |
| 4. | to come down in, or like, an avalanche. |
| 5. | to overwhelm with an extremely large amount of anything; swamp. |
[Origin: 1755–65; < F < dial. (Savoy) avalantse, alter. (by assoc. with avaler to descend rapidly) of laventse < pre-L (perh. Ligurian) *lavanca, or reshaping of LL labīna landslide (deriv. of L labī to slide) with a pre-L suffix -anca
]
] | Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
avalanche
To learn more about avalanche visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| av·a·lanche
Audio Help (āv'ə-lānch') Pronunciation Key
n.
v. av·a·lanched, av·a·lanch·ing, av·a·lanch·es v. intr. To fall or slide in a massive or overwhelming amount. v. tr. To overwhelm; inundate. [French; akin to Provençal lavanca, ravine, perhaps ultimately from Latin lābī, to slip.] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
avalanche
1771, from Fr. avalanche, from Romansch avalantze "descent," altered (by metathesis of -l- and -v-, probably influenced by O.Fr. avaler "to descend, go down") from Prov. lavanca "avalanche," perhaps from a pre-L. Alpine language (the suffix -anca suggests Ligurian).
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| avalanche | |
noun | |
| 1. | a slide of large masses of snow and ice and mud down a mountain |
| 2. | a sudden appearance of an overwhelming number of things; "the program brought an avalanche of mail" |
verb | |
| 1. | gather into a huge mass and roll down a mountain, of snow |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
avalanche [ˈӕvəlaːnʃ] noun
a fall of snow and ice down a mountain
Example: Two skiers were buried by the avalanche.
Example: Two skiers were buried by the avalanche.
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| Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd. |
avalanche
Audio Help (āv'ə-lānch') Pronunciation Key
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| The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
Avalanche
Av"a*lanche`\ (?; 277), n. [F. avalanche, fr. avaler to descend, to let down, from aval down, downward; ? (L. ad) + val, L. vallis, valley. See Valley.]1. A large mass or body of snow and ice sliding swiftly down a mountain side, or falling down a precipice. 2. A fall of earth, rocks, etc., similar to that of an avalanche of snow or ice. 3. A sudden, great, or irresistible descent or influx of anything.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
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