mon·soon

[mon-soon]
noun
1.
the seasonal wind of the Indian Ocean and southern Asia, blowing from the southwest in summer and from the northeast in winter.
2.
(in India and nearby lands) the season during which the southwest monsoon blows, commonly marked by heavy rains; rainy season.
3.
any wind that changes directions with the seasons.
4.
any persistent wind established between water and adjoining land.
Origin:
1575–85; < Dutch monssoen (now obsolete) < Portuguese monção, earlier moução < Arabic mawsim season

Related forms
mon·soon·al, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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00:10
Monsoon is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.
an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
monsoon (mɒnˈsuːn) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  a seasonal wind of S Asia that blows from the southwest in summer, bringing heavy rains, and from the northeast in winter
2.  the rainy season when the SW monsoon blows, from about April to October
3.  any wind that changes direction with the seasons
 
[C16: from obsolete Dutch monssoen, from Portuguese monção, from Arabic mawsim season]
 
mon'soonal
 
—adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

monsoon
"trade wind of the Indian Ocean," 1584, from Du. monssoen, from Port. monçao, from Ar. mawsim "appropriate season" (for a voyage, pilgrimage, etc.), from wasama "he marked." When it blows from the southwest (April through October) it brings heavy rain, hence "the rainy season" (1747).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
monsoon   (mŏn-sn')  Pronunciation Key 

  1. A system of winds that influences the climate of a large area and that reverses direction with the seasons. Monsoons are caused primarily by the much greater annual variation in temperature over large areas of land than over large areas of adjacent ocean water. This variation causes an excess of atmospheric pressure over the continents in the winter, and a deficit in the summer. The disparity causes strong winds to blow between the ocean and the land, bringing heavy seasonal rainfall.

  2. In southern Asia, a wind that is part of such a system and that blows from the southwest in the summer and usually brings heavy rains.


The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary

monsoon definition


A wind system that affects large climatic regions and reverses direction seasonally.

Note: The Asiatic monsoon brings heavy rains to Southeast Asia in spring and summer.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Example sentences
Actually it is pretty cloudy and gets a real drenching during the monsoon.
The campaign was also timed to take place during the pre-monsoon season when
  large convective thunder clouds develop every day.
The monsoon rains of the past month will help draw some of the criticism's
  sting.
Monsoon seasons can turn a year on the road into a year in the mud, so plan
  carefully.
Related Words
antimonsoon
monsoon low
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