avalanche

C2 Topic:Nature & Landscape

US /ˈævəlæn(t)ʃ/ UK /ˈævəlɑːnʃ/ See IPA manual

Freq #14021

Meanings

1

noun
a large mass of snow, ice, and sometimes rock that suddenly rushes down a mountain

The avalanche buried the road beneath several meters of snow.
2

noun
a sudden, overwhelming quantity of things

The announcement triggered an avalanche of applications.
3

verb
to descend rapidly in a great mass, or to overwhelm as if in an avalanche

Wet snow avalanched down the gully after the temperature rose.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a large mass of snow, ice,... snowslidesnow slide

2 noun · a sudden, overwhelming... deluge flood torrent

3 verb · to descend rapidly in a... cascade tumble overwhelm

Opposites

trickle scarcity

Word family

Derived forms avalanchelike

Related forms slab avalanchelandslidesnowpackdebris flow

Etymology

Borrowed from French avalanche, from a Franco-Provençal Alpine word for a descending mass of snow. Its deeper origin is uncertain, but the form was influenced by French aval, 'downhill,' and has been connected with Late Latin and regional words derived from Latin labi, 'to slip or slide.' The figurative sense treats an overwhelming quantity as a rushing mass.

Topics

Nature & Landscape

External links

# avalanche

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈævəlæn(t)ʃ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈævəlɑːnʃ/
**Frequency rank:** 14021

## Meanings
1. a large mass of snow, ice, and sometimes rock that suddenly rushes down a mountain
2. a sudden, overwhelming quantity of things
3. to descend rapidly in a great mass, or to overwhelm as if in an avalanche

## Examples
- The avalanche buried the road beneath several meters of snow.
- The announcement triggered an avalanche of applications.
- Wet snow avalanched down the gully after the temperature rose.

## Synonyms
- snowslide
- deluge
- flood
- torrent
- cascade

## Antonyms
- trickle
- scarcity

## Derived Forms
- avalanchelike

## Related Forms
- slab avalanche
- landslide
- snowpack
- debris flow

## Etymology
Borrowed from French avalanche, from a Franco-Provençal Alpine word for a descending mass of snow. Its deeper origin is uncertain, but the form was influenced by French aval, 'downhill,' and has been connected with Late Latin and regional words derived from Latin labi, 'to slip or slide.' The figurative sense treats an overwhelming quantity as a rushing mass.

## Topics
- Nature & Landscape

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