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monsoon

 - 5 dictionary results

mon⋅soon

  [mon-soon]
Use monsoon in a Sentence
–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; < D monssoen (now obs.) < Pg monção, earlier moução < Ar mawsim season

Related forms:
mon⋅soon⋅al, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To monsoon
mon·soon   (mŏn-sōōn')   
n.  

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

    1. A wind from the southwest or south that brings heavy rainfall to southern Asia in the summer.

    2. The rain that accompanies this wind.


[Obsolete Dutch monssoen, from Portuguese monção, from Arabic mawsim, season, from wasama, to mark; see wsm in Semitic roots.]
mon·soon'al adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Cultural Dictionary

monsoon

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.
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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, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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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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