spindrift

ˈspɪndɹɪft

2 definitions

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#1·4h ago

(nautical) Sea spray (clouds of water droplets) blown from the tops of waves by the wind and whipped along the surface of the sea.

The ocean waves are broken up by wind, ultimately producing the storm-wrack and spin-drift of the tempest-tossed sea.

Origin: [[File:2012-01-17 13-20-51 Spain Canarias Ajuy.jpg|thumb|Spindrift (sense 1.1) off the coast of Fuerteventura, one of the Canary Islands, Spain.]] Borrowed from ; further etymology uncertain. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests it is a variant of spoondrift (archaic), apparently due to the pronunciation of this word in southwestern Scotland, which is derived from ; spoon is a variant of spoom. However, this is doubted by the Scottish National Dictionary because spoondrift is attested later than spindrift and it seems unlikely that the Scots spelling would have superseded the English one,. Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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#2·4h ago

(by extension) Clouds of sand, snow, etc., whipped along the ground by the wind.

The ocean waves are broken up by wind, ultimately producing the storm-wrack and spin-drift of the tempest-tossed sea.

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