US /ˈblɪzɚd/ UK /ˈblɪzəd/
noun

Meanings

  1. 1
    noun

    a severe snowstorm with high winds and reduced visibility

    The blizzard buried the village under two feet of snow overnight.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 noun · a severe snowstorm with... snowstormwhiteouttempestsquallgalestorm
Word family
Derived forms blizzardy

Etymology

An Americanism first recorded in the 1820s with the sense 'a violent blow'; its application to snowstorms dates from the 1870s. Of obscure origin, possibly imitative or related to dialectal 'blizz' ('violent rainstorm').

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