harmattan

[hahr-muh-tan]

har·mat·tan

[hahr-muh-tan]
noun
(on the west coast of Africa) a dry, parching land breeze, charged with dust.

Origin:
1665–75; said to be < Twi haramata
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Harmattan is always a great word to know.
So is doohickey. Does it mean:
a gadget; dingus; thingumbob.
a fool or simpleton; ninny.
Collins
World English Dictionary
harmattan (hɑːˈmætən)
 
n
a dry dusty wind from the Sahara blowing towards the W African coast, esp from November to March
 
[C17: from Twi haramata, perhaps from Arabic harām forbidden thing; see harem]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

harmattan

hot, dry wind that blows from the northeast or east in the western Sahara and is strongest in late fall and winter (late November to mid-March). It usually carries large amounts of dust, which it transports hundreds of kilometres out over the Atlantic Ocean; the dust often interferes with aircraft operations and settles on the decks of ships.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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