English Explanatory Dictionary

avalanche

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  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; anything like an avalanche in suddenness and overwhelming quantity.
verb
  1. To descend like an avalanche.
  2. To come down upon; to overwhelm.
  3. To propel downward like an avalanche.

Pronunciation

/ˈævəlɑːnʃ/ /ˈævəlæn(t)ʃ/ en-us-avalanche.ogg

Word forms

avalanche avalanches avalanching avalanched

Etymology

From French avalanche, from Franco-Provençal (Savoy) avalançhe, blend of aval (“downhill”) and standard lavençhe, from Vulgar Latin *labanka (compare Occitan lavanca, Italian valanga), of uncertain origin, perhaps an alteration of Late Latin lābīna (“landslide”) (compare Franco-Provençal (Dauphiné) lavino, Romansh lavina), from Latin lābēs, from lābor (“to slip, slide”).

Synonyms

snowslide snowslip barrage blitz

Derived words

applanche avalanche effect avalancheless avalanchelike avalanche lily electron avalanche interavalanche slab avalanche Townsend avalanche
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