The definition of the word weather

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Weather is the state of the atmosphere, describing for example the degree to which it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy.^[1] On Earth, most weather phenomena occur in the lowest layer of the planet’s atmosphere, the troposphere,^[2][3] just below the stratosphere. Weather refers to day-to-day temperature, precipitation, and other atmospheric conditions, whereas climate is the term for the averaging of atmospheric conditions over longer periods of time.^[4] When used without qualification, «weather» is generally understood to mean the weather of Earth.

Weather is driven by air pressure, temperature, and moisture differences between one place and another. These differences can occur due to the Sun’s angle at any particular spot, which varies with latitude. The strong temperature contrast between polar and tropical air gives rise to the largest scale atmospheric circulations: the Hadley cell, the Ferrel cell, the polar cell, and the jet stream. Weather systems in the middle latitudes, such as extratropical cyclones, are caused by instabilities of the jet streamflow. Because Earth’s axis is tilted relative to its orbital plane (called the ecliptic), sunlight is incident at different angles at different times of the year. On Earth’s surface, temperatures usually range ±40 °C (−40 °F to 104 °F) annually. Over thousands of years, changes in Earth’s orbit can affect the amount and distribution of solar energy received by Earth, thus influencing long-term climate and global climate change.

Surface temperature differences in turn cause pressure differences. Higher altitudes are cooler than lower altitudes, as most atmospheric heating is due to contact with the Earth’s surface while radiative losses to space are mostly constant. Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a future time and a given location. Earth’s weather system is a chaotic system; as a result, small changes to one part of the system can grow to have large effects on the system as a whole. Human attempts to control the weather have occurred throughout history, and there is evidence that human activities such as agriculture and industry have modified weather patterns

Studying how the weather works on other planets has been helpful in understanding how weather works on Earth. A famous landmark in the Solar System, Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, is an anticyclonic storm known to have existed for at least 300 years. However, the weather is not limited to planetary bodies. A star’s corona is constantly being lost to space, creating what is essentially a very thin atmosphere throughout the Solar System. The movement of mass ejected from the Sun is known as the solar wind.

Causes

On Earth, the common weather phenomena include wind, cloud, rain, snow, fog and dust storms. Less common events include natural disasters such as tornadoes, hurricanes, typhoons and ice storms. Almost all familiar weather phenomena occur in the troposphere (the lower part of the atmosphere).^[3] Weather does occur in the stratosphere and can affect weather lower down in the troposphere, but the exact mechanisms are poorly understood.^[5]

Weather occurs primarily due to air pressure, temperature and moisture differences between one place to another. These differences can occur due to the sun angle at any particular spot, which varies by latitude from the tropics. In other words, the farther from the tropics one lies, the lower the sun angle is, which causes those locations to be cooler due to the spread of the sunlight over a greater surface.^[6] The strong temperature contrast between polar and tropical air gives rise to the large scale atmospheric circulation cells and the jet stream.^[7] Weather systems in the mid-latitudes, such as extratropical cyclones, are caused by instabilities of the jet stream flow (see baroclinity).^[8] Weather systems in the tropics, such as monsoons or organized thunderstorm systems, are caused by different processes.

Because the Earth’s axis is tilted relative to its orbital plane, sunlight is incident at different angles at different times of the year. In June the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the sun, so at any given Northern Hemisphere latitude sunlight falls more directly on that spot than in December (see Effect of sun angle on climate).^[10] This effect causes seasons. Over thousands to hundreds of thousands of years, changes in Earth’s orbital parameters affect the amount and distribution of solar energy received by the Earth and influence long-term climate. (See Milankovitch cycles).^[11]

The uneven solar heating (the formation of zones of temperature and moisture gradients, or frontogenesis) can also be due to the weather itself in the form of cloudiness and precipitation.^[12] Higher altitudes are typically cooler than lower altitudes, which the result of higher surface temperature and radiational heating, which produces the adiabatic lapse rate.^[13][14] In some situations, the temperature actually increases with height. This phenomenon is known as an inversion and can cause mountaintops to be warmer than the valleys below. Inversions can lead to the formation of fog and often act as a cap that suppresses thunderstorm development. On local scales, temperature differences can occur because different surfaces (such as oceans, forests, ice sheets, or man-made objects) have differing physical characteristics such as reflectivity, roughness, or moisture content.

Surface temperature differences in turn cause pressure differences. A hot surface warms the air above it causing it to expand and lower the density and the resulting surface air pressure.^[15] The resulting horizontal pressure gradient moves the air from higher to lower pressure regions, creating a wind, and the Earth’s rotation then causes deflection of this airflow due to the Coriolis effect.^[16] The simple systems thus formed can then display emergent behaviour to produce more complex systems and thus other weather phenomena. Large scale examples include the Hadley cell while a smaller scale example would be coastal breezes.

The atmosphere is a chaotic system. As a result, small changes to one part of the system can accumulate and magnify to cause large effects on the system as a whole.^[17] This atmospheric instability makes weather forecasting less predictable than tides or eclipses.^[18] Although it is difficult to accurately predict weather more than a few days in advance, weather forecasters are continually working to extend this limit through meteorological research and refining current methodologies in weather prediction. However, it is theoretically impossible to make useful day-to-day predictions more than about two weeks ahead, imposing an upper limit to potential for improved prediction skill.^[19]

Shaping the planet Earth

Weather is one of the fundamental processes that shape the Earth. The process of weathering breaks down the rocks and soils into smaller fragments and then into their constituent substances.^[20] During rains precipitation, the water droplets absorb and dissolve carbon dioxide from the surrounding air. This causes the rainwater to be slightly acidic, which aids the erosive properties of water. The released sediment and chemicals are then free to take part in chemical reactions that can affect the surface further (such as acid rain), and sodium and chloride ions (salt) deposited in the seas/oceans. The sediment may reform in time and by geological forces into other rocks and soils. In this way, weather plays a major role in erosion of the surface.^[21]

Effect on humans

Weather, seen from an anthropological perspective, is something all humans in the world constantly experience through their senses, at least while being outside. There are socially and scientifically constructed understandings of what weather is, what makes it change, the effect it has on humans in different situations, etc.^[22] Therefore, weather is something people often communicate about. The National Weather Service has an annual report for fatalities, injury, and total damage costs which include crop and property. They gather this data via National Weather Service offices located throughout the 50 states in the United States as well as Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands. As of 2019, tornadoes have had the greatest impact on humans with 42 fatalities while costing crop and property damage over 3 billion dollars.^[23]

Effects on populations

The weather has played a large and sometimes direct part in human history. Aside from climatic changes that have caused the gradual drift of populations (for example the desertification of the Middle East, and the formation of land bridges during glacial periods), extreme weather events have caused smaller scale population movements and intruded directly in historical events. One such event is the saving of Japan from invasion by the Mongol fleet of Kublai Khan by the Kamikaze winds in 1281.^[24] French claims to Florida came to an end in 1565 when a hurricane destroyed the French fleet, allowing Spain to conquer Fort Caroline.^[25] More recently, Hurricane Katrina redistributed over one million people from the central Gulf coast elsewhere across the United States, becoming the largest diaspora in the history of the United States.^[26]

The Little Ice Age caused crop failures and famines in Europe. During the period known as the Grindelwald Fluctuation (1560–1630), volcanic forcing events^[27] seem to have led to more extreme weather events.^[28] These included droughts, storms and unseasonal blizzards, as well as causing the Swiss Grindelwald Glacier to expand. The 1690s saw the worst famine in France since the Middle Ages. Finland suffered a severe famine in 1696–1697, during which about one-third of the Finnish population died.^[29]

Forecasting

Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a future time and a given location. Human beings have attempted to predict the weather informally for millennia, and formally since at least the nineteenth century.^[30] Weather forecasts are made by collecting quantitative data about the current state of the atmosphere and using scientific understanding of atmospheric processes to project how the atmosphere will evolve.^[31]

Once an all-human endeavor based mainly upon changes in barometric pressure, current weather conditions, and sky condition,^[32][33] forecast models are now used to determine future conditions. On the other hand, human input is still required to pick the best possible forecast model to base the forecast upon, which involves many disciplines such as pattern recognition skills, teleconnections, knowledge of model performance, and knowledge of model biases.

The chaotic nature of the atmosphere, the massive computational power required to solve the equations that describe the atmosphere, the error involved in measuring the initial conditions, and an incomplete understanding of atmospheric processes mean that forecasts become less accurate as of the difference in current time and the time for which the forecast is being made (the range of the forecast) increases. The use of ensembles and model consensus helps to narrow the error and pick the most likely outcome.^[34][35][36]

There are a variety of end users to weather forecasts. Weather warnings are important forecasts because they are used to protect life and property.^[37][38] Forecasts based on temperature and precipitation are important to agriculture,^{[39][40][41][42]} and therefore to commodity traders within stock markets. Temperature forecasts are used by utility companies to estimate demand over coming days.^[43][44][45]

In some areas, people use weather forecasts to determine what to wear on a given day. Since outdoor activities are severely curtailed by heavy rain, snow and the wind chill, forecasts can be used to plan activities around these events and to plan ahead to survive through them.

Tropical weather forecasting is different from that at higher latitudes. The sun shines more directly on the tropics than on higher latitudes (at least on average over a year), which makes the tropics warm (Stevens 2011). And, the vertical direction (up, as one stands on the Earth’s surface) is perpendicular to the Earth’s axis of rotation at the equator, while the axis of rotation and the vertical are the same at the pole; this causes the Earth’s rotation to influence the atmospheric circulation more strongly at high latitudes than low. Because of these two factors, clouds and rainstorms in the tropics can occur more spontaneously compared to those at higher latitudes, where they are more tightly controlled by larger-scale forces in the atmosphere. Because of these differences, clouds and rain are more difficult to forecast in the tropics than at higher latitudes. On the other hand, the temperature is easily forecast in the tropics, because it doesn’t change much.^[46]

Modification

The aspiration to control the weather is evident throughout human history: from ancient rituals intended to bring rain for crops to the U.S. Military Operation Popeye, an attempt to disrupt supply lines by lengthening the North Vietnamese monsoon. The most successful attempts at influencing weather involve cloud seeding; they include the fog- and low stratus dispersion techniques employed by major airports, techniques used to increase winter precipitation over mountains, and techniques to suppress hail.^[47] A recent example of weather control was China’s preparation for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. China shot 1,104 rain dispersal rockets from 21 sites in the city of Beijing in an effort to keep rain away from the opening ceremony of the games on 8 August 2008. Guo Hu, head of the Beijing Municipal Meteorological Bureau (BMB), confirmed the success of the operation with 100 millimeters falling in Baoding City of Hebei Province, to the southwest and Beijing’s Fangshan District recording a rainfall of 25 millimeters.^[48]

Whereas there is inconclusive evidence for these techniques’ efficacy, there is extensive evidence that human activity such as agriculture and industry results in inadvertent weather modification:^[47]

• Acid rain, caused by industrial emission of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere, adversely affects freshwater lakes, vegetation, and structures.
• Anthropogenic pollutants reduce air quality and visibility.
• Climate change caused by human activities that emit greenhouse gases into the air is expected to affect the frequency of extreme weather events such as drought, extreme temperatures, flooding, high winds, and severe storms.^[49]
• Heat, generated by large metropolitan areas have been shown to minutely affect nearby weather, even at distances as far as 1,600 kilometres (990 mi).^[50]

The effects of inadvertent weather modification may pose serious threats to many aspects of civilization, including ecosystems, natural resources, food and fiber production, economic development, and human health.^[51]

Microscale meteorology

Microscale meteorology is the study of short-lived atmospheric phenomena smaller than mesoscale, about 1 km or less. These two branches of meteorology are sometimes grouped together as «mesoscale and microscale meteorology» (MMM) and together study all phenomena smaller than synoptic scale; that is they study features generally too small to be depicted on a weather map. These include small and generally fleeting cloud «puffs» and other small cloud features.^[52]

Extremes on Earth

On Earth, temperatures usually range ±40 °C (100 °F to −40 °F) annually. The range of climates and latitudes across the planet can offer extremes of temperature outside this range. The coldest air temperature ever recorded on Earth is −89.2 °C (−128.6 °F), at Vostok Station, Antarctica on 21 July 1983. The hottest air temperature ever recorded was 57.7 °C (135.9 °F) at ‘Aziziya, Libya, on 13 September 1922,^[54] but that reading is queried. The highest recorded average annual temperature was 34.4 °C (93.9 °F) at Dallol, Ethiopia.^[55] The coldest recorded average annual temperature was −55.1 °C (−67.2 °F) at Vostok Station, Antarctica.^[56]

The coldest average annual temperature in a permanently inhabited location is at Eureka, Nunavut, in Canada, where the annual average temperature is −19.7 °C (−3.5 °F).^[57]

The windiest place ever recorded is in Antarctica, Commonwealth Bay (George V Coast).^{[citation needed]} Here the gales reach 199 mph (320 km/h).^{[citation needed]} Furthermore, the greatest snowfall in a period of twelve months occurred in Mount Rainier, Washington, USA. It was recorded as 31,102 mm (102.04 ft) of snow.^[58]

Studying how the weather works on other planets has been seen as helpful in understanding how it works on Earth.^[59] Weather on other planets follows many of the same physical principles as weather on Earth, but occurs on different scales and in atmospheres having different chemical composition. The Cassini–Huygens mission to Titan discovered clouds formed from methane or ethane which deposit rain composed of liquid methane and other organic compounds.^[60] Earth’s atmosphere includes six latitudinal circulation zones, three in each hemisphere.^[61] In contrast, Jupiter’s banded appearance shows many such zones,^[62] Titan has a single jet stream near the 50th parallel north latitude,^[63] and Venus has a single jet near the equator.^[64]

One of the most famous landmarks in the Solar System, Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, is an anticyclonic storm known to have existed for at least 300 years.^[65] On other gas giants, the lack of a surface allows the wind to reach enormous speeds: gusts of up to 600 metres per second (about 2,100 km/h or 1,300 mph) have been measured on the planet Neptune.^[66] This has created a puzzle for planetary scientists. The weather is ultimately created by solar energy and the amount of energy received by Neptune is only about 1⁄900 of that received by Earth, yet the intensity of weather phenomena on Neptune is far greater than on Earth.^[67] The strongest planetary winds discovered so far are on the extrasolar planet HD 189733 b, which is thought to have easterly winds moving at more than 9,600 kilometres per hour (6,000 mph).^[68]

Space weather

Weather is not limited to planetary bodies. Like all stars, the Sun’s corona is constantly being lost to space, creating what is essentially a very thin atmosphere throughout the Solar System. The movement of mass ejected from the Sun is known as the solar wind. Inconsistencies in this wind and larger events on the surface of the star, such as coronal mass ejections, form a system that has features analogous to conventional weather systems (such as pressure and wind) and is generally known as space weather. Coronal mass ejections have been tracked as far out in the Solar System as Saturn.^[69] The activity of this system can affect planetary atmospheres and occasionally surfaces. The interaction of the solar wind with the terrestrial atmosphere can produce spectacular aurorae,^[70] and can play havoc with electrically sensitive systems such as electricity grids and radio signals.^[71]

See also

• Glossary of meteorology
• Indigenous Australian seasons
• Outline of meteorology
• Weather station
• Weather of 2021

References

External links

Recent Examples on the Web

Nunn Bush Men’s Kore City Walk Lace to Toe Oxford Sneakers, from $48 (originally $80) Best Hiking Boot and Shoe Deals Outdoor adventurers are probably super psyched for the warm weather.


—Gabrielle Porcaro, Travel + Leisure, 8 Apr. 2023




The Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center placed parts of the area under a Level 2 of 5 risk for severe weather.


—Jason Samenow, Washington Post, 6 Apr. 2023




Now, as crews in different communities work to clear debris, a slight risk for severe weather is forecast for over 35 million people Thursday from parts of North Carolina to the Mid-Atlantic.


—Nouran Salahieh, CNN, 6 Apr. 2023




SweatyRocks Wide-Leg Trouser Pants, $36.99; amazon.com A blazer is a wonderful option for those cooler spring days, and this lightweight option by Wdirar is the perfect layering piece for unpredictable weather thanks to its open-front design.


—Nicol Natale, Peoplemag, 6 Apr. 2023




This week’s slate of new deals answer any and all questions about dressing for transitional weather with a few simple clicks.


—Halie Lesavage, harpersbazaar.com, 6 Apr. 2023




Forecasters are keeping a wary eye out for more extreme weather as this year’s early severe storm season continues.


—Chicago Tribune Staff, Chicago Tribune, 6 Apr. 2023




Alex Manion, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in White Lake Township, tells us: A tornado watch means that the atmospheric conditions are ripe for severe weather and tornadoes.


—Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, 5 Apr. 2023




In addition, evidence suggests there will be a more favorable environment for severe weather — and probably tornadoes — in a warmer future.


—Jeff Berardelli, CBS News, 5 Apr. 2023

Dergarabedian predicts that Dungeons & Dragons will be able to weather competition from Universal and Illuminaton’s animated video game adaptation The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which opens next weekend.


—Pamela Mcclintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Apr. 2023




Ultimately, smart business leaders looking to cautiously weather another year of uncertainty can effectively use quiet hiring practices by supporting their people’s personal growth and development.


—Ken Babcock, Quartz, 30 Mar. 2023




But clearly it’s not been enough to weather a difficult period for the industry.


—Jon Porter, The Verge, 30 Mar. 2023




Government agencies, water district officials and nonprofits are eyeing the practice as a way to weather swings in climate, especially as California muddles through a winter that has experts forecasting the Sierra Nevada snowpack could last for months.


—Amy Taxin, ajc, 28 Mar. 2023




Rolling Fork uses a building code from 1999, meaning even modern buildings may lack newer construction techniques that would improve their ability to weather storms, according to Giammanco.


—Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 28 Mar. 2023




Nia Sanchez and husband Daniel Booko are expecting twin girls later this year Share Tweet Pin Email Nia Sanchez is opening up about weathering a storm in her pregnancy.


—Angela Andaloro, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2023




It had been finished a couple of weeks before and had weathered much rain in the interim.


—Lola Sherman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Mar. 2023




Miami, Texas locked in a back-and-forth battle At different points in the first half, both No. 5 Miami and No. 2 Texas have had to weather shots from their opponents, only to respond.


—Lorenzo Reyes, USA TODAY, 26 Mar. 2023

According to Stephen Clark, this was SpaceX’s first non-weather, non-range terminal countdown abort since NROL-108 in December 2020.


—Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 22 July 2022




And now people with a non-weather background reference it, too.


—Jennifer Sangalang, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2022




These breakfasts are particularly popular in Asia and the Pacific, especially at warm-weather private villa resorts in places like Thailand, Fiji and the Maldives.


—Lilit Marcus, CNN, 21 June 2021




Current laws allow non-weather water loss claims up to five years after the incident that caused the damage.


—Ron Hurtibise, sun-sentinel.com, 14 Nov. 2020




Sun Country’s business consists of commercial flights between the United States and warm-weather international vacation destinations, transporting cargo for Amazon, and charter flights.


—Washington Post, 21 Oct. 2020




That chapter has not stopped the media personality from sharing his non-weather opinions on social media.


—Neal Justin, Star Tribune, 12 Aug. 2020


See More

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	weather — the atmospheric conditions that comprise the state of the atmosphere in terms of temperature and wind and clouds and precipitation; «they were hoping for good weather»; «every day we have weather conditions and yesterday was no exception»; «the conditions were too rainy for playing in the snow» atmospheric condition, weather condition, conditions meteorology — the earth science dealing with phenomena of the atmosphere (especially weather) atmospheric phenomenon — a physical phenomenon associated with the atmosphere cold weather — a period of unusually cold weather fair weather, temperateness, sunshine — moderate weather; suitable for outdoor activities hot weather — a period of unusually high temperatures thaw, thawing, warming — warm weather following a freeze; snow and ice melt; «they welcomed the spring thaw» downfall, precipitation — the falling to earth of any form of water (rain or snow or hail or sleet or mist) wave — a persistent and widespread unusual weather condition (especially of unusual temperatures); «a heat wave» elements — violent or severe weather (viewed as caused by the action of the four elements); «they felt the full fury of the elements» air current, current of air, wind — air moving (sometimes with considerable force) from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure; «trees bent under the fierce winds»; «when there is no wind, row»; «the radioactivity was being swept upwards by the air current and out into the atmosphere» atmospheric state, atmosphere — the weather or climate at some place; «the atmosphere was thick with fog» good weather — weather suitable for outdoor activities bad weather, inclemency, inclementness — weather unsuitable for outdoor activities
Verb	1.	weather — face and withstand with courage; «She braved the elements» brave, brave out, endure defy, withstand, hold up, hold — resist or confront with resistance; «The politician defied public opinion»; «The new material withstands even the greatest wear and tear»; «The bridge held»
	2.	weather — cause to slope lean, tilt, angle, slant, tip — to incline or bend from a vertical position; «She leaned over the banister»
	3.	weather — sail to the windward of     navigation, pilotage, piloting — the guidance of ships or airplanes from place to place sail — travel on water propelled by wind; «I love sailing, especially on the open sea»; «the ship sails on»
	4.	weather — change under the action or influence of the weather; «A weathered old hut» decay, dilapidate, crumble — fall into decay or ruin; «The unoccupied house started to decay»
Adj.	1.	weather — towards the side exposed to wind   upwind windward — on the side exposed to the wind; «the windward islands»

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

weather

verb

2. withstand, stand, suffer, survive, overcome, resist, brave, endure, come through, get through, rise above, live through, ride out, make it through (informal), surmount, pull through, stick it out (informal), bear up against The company has weathered the recession.
withstand yield to, surrender to, give in to, succumb to

under the weather ill, unwell, poorly (informal), sick, rough (informal), crook (Austral. & N.Z. informal), ailing, not well, seedy (informal), below par, queasy, out of sorts, nauseous, off-colour (Brit.), indisposed, peaky, ropy (Brit. informal), wabbit (Scot. informal) I’m feeling a bit under the weather today.

Quotations
«Summer has set in with its usual severity» [Samuel Taylor Coleridge]
«‘Tis the hard grey weather»
«Breeds hard English men» [Charles Kingsley The Three Fishers]
«weather: the climate of an hour» [Ambrose Bierce The Devil’s Dictionary]

Proverbs
«Red sky at night, shepherd’s delight; red sky in the morning, shepherd’s warning»

see regions of the atmosphere, types of cloud, winds

Weather

Weather descriptions  arctic, baking, balmy, bland, blistering, blustery, breezy, clammy, clear, clement, close, cloudy, cold, dirty, dreich (Scot.), drizzly, dry, dull, filthy, fine, foggy, foul, freezing (informal), fresh, hazy, hot, humid, icy, inclement, mild, misty, muggy, nippy, overcast, parky (informal), perishing (informal), rainy, raw, scorching (informal), showery, snowy, sticky, stormy, sultry, sunny, thundery, tropical, wet, windy, wintry

Weather phenomena  acid rain, ball lightning, breeze, cloud, cold snap, cyclone, drizzle, dust devil, dust storm, fog, freeze, gale, gust, haar (Scot.), hail, heatwave, hurricane, ice, lightning, mist, peasouper (chiefly Brit.), precipitation, pressure, rain, sandstorm, sheet lightning, shower, sleet, smirr (Scot.), snow, squall, storm, sunshine, tempest (literary), thaw, thunder, tidal wave, tornado, tsunami, typhoon, waterspout, whirlwind, wind, willy-willy (Austral.), zephyr

Meteorological terms  anticyclone, cold front, cyclone, depression, front, heat-island, isallobar, isobar, lee wave, occluded front, ridge, scud, synoptic chart, thermal, trough, virga, warm front

Gatherers of weather data  dropsonde, meteorograph, Meteorological Office or Met. Office, pilot balloon, radiosonde, weather ship, weather station, weatherman, weatherwoman

Measuring instruments 

Phenomenon measured
anemometer	wind velocity
anemoscope	wind direction
atmometer	rate of water evaporation into atmosphere
barograph	atmospheric pressure
barometer	atmospheric pressure
baroscope	atmospheric pressure
hygrometer	humidity
maximum-minimum thermometer	temperature variation
nephoscope	cloud velocity, altitude, and direction of movement
psychrometer	humidity
rain gauge	rainfall and snowfall
rawinsonde	atmospheric wind velocity
Stevenson’s screen	temperature
sunshine recorder	hours of sunshine
thermometer	temperature
weathercock	wind direction
weather vane	wind direction
wet-and-dry-bulb thermometer	humidity
wind gauge	wind velocity
wind tee	wind direction

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

weather

verb

To exist in spite of adversity:

The American Heritage® Roget’s Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

We’ve all talked about the weather. It’s probably among the most common conversation topics of all time. Odds are, if you speak the English language, you have used the word weather. 

But there’s a bit more to this word than meets the eye, mostly in what it often gets confused with and how it gets misspelled. If you find yourself being confused with this word, let’s take it back to the basics and build from there.

Today’s word of the day is weather. By the end of this short guide, you’ll have a solid understanding of the word weather, its definitions, its etymology, and how to use it. Let’s get started. 

What Is the Meaning of the Word Weather?

The word weather has a pretty simple meaning. But it’s actually one of those words that are so foundational that it is somewhat difficult to define. But here’s a definition of the word weather: 

• A combination of atmospheric conditions, such as movement, humidity, water condensation, etc. that create various events in the atmosphere, such as precipitation, cloudiness, humidity, temperature fluctuations, and more. Typically referring to the atmospheric conditions of a specific regional area. 

In short, the weather is the state of the atmosphere at a particular time in a given region or area. The weather could be a thunderstorm or a bright and sunny day. It could be cold weather, bad weather, heat waves, or high winds. 

The word weather has been foundational throughout language for millennia. There has never been a time when human beings didn’t need to know what the weather was doing, so this word has always been around in some form or another. 

The study of weather is called meteorology, in which scientists study conditions of the atmosphere weather patterns in order to predict the weather conditions of a place over a period of time. This prediction is called the weather forecast. 

Common Collocations

With such an important word, there are bound to be several collocations and idioms associated with it. A collocation is a common pairing of two words that occurs more than just by coincidence, so essentially, it’s a short, two-word common saying. Here is a list of some collocations for the word weather: 

• Good weather
• Bad weather
• Heavy weather
• Fair weather
• Weather service
• Hot weather
• Cold weather
• Warm Weather
• Weather events

Common Misunderstandings

Many people often get confused about the spelling of the word weather. It is pronounced the exact same as another English word: whether. The word whether is a conjunction that is used to convey a choice, a doubt, or multiple outcomes in a situation. 

These words are homophones, meaning that they sound the exact same or close to the exact same but carry two different meanings. Be on the lookout for misspellings of the word weather, so you don’t get confused or confuse others. 

Where Did the Word Weather Come From?

To help bring more clarity to the definition of weather, let’s look at the history of how it came to be or its etymology.

The word weather actually comes from the ancient Germanic family of languages, so it has been around for far too long to even know the exact origin. That ancient Germanic language evolved into several different languages, including Old English, Dutch, and German, over the millennia. 

We see a similar root and spelling for the same word in all three of these languages. There was the Old English weder, the Dutch weer, and the German wetter.  

During the transition of Old English to what we have now (a period called Middle English), the spelling changed slightly to the word we have now: weather. 

Now, there are several phrases and idioms in the English language that use the word out of context, such as the phrases “under the weather,” “to weather (meaning to bear or deal with successfully),” and “weathered (meaning to become worn over time).” 

What Are Some Examples of the Word Weather in a Sentence?

Seeing a word in context can help bring more clarity to its definition and how you can use it in your own life. Here are some example sentences that use weather:

• With Hurricane Ida drawing close to the coast, we’re already starting to see the strong winds and extreme weather affect the communities here. 
• I didn’t check the weather report for today, otherwise I would have brought my rain jacket. 
• The weather report said the snowfall would start at around 10:00 AM, and the heavy winds would pick up at about 1:00 in the afternoon. 
• If the weather looks good, we should go out for a picnic in the park this weekend. 
• Once the weather starts to change each season, my allergies really act up, making me sick with hay fever for a week or more.
• I don’t know if I will be able to go out tonight. I’m feeling a bit under the weather. 
• I don’t know how we did it, but our family weathered the recession, and we made it out okay. 
• His beautiful sunburst guitar was perfectly weathered from years and years of touring around the world. 

What Are the Synonyms of the Word Weather?

Here are some synonyms of the word weather that you might find in a thesaurus:

• Climate
• Elements 
• Get through
• Overcome
• Ride out
• Withstand
• Worn
• Hardened
• Aged
• Battered

What Are Antonyms of the Word Weather?

Here are some antonyms for the word weather:

• Give in 
• Yield
• Surrender
• Pristine
• New

The Word Weather

Now you know everything you need to know about the word weather, its definition, its history, and how to use it. Use it confidently in your writing and your conversation. And if you need a refresher on this word, come back to this article for the information you need.

Sources

WEATHER | Cambridge English Dictionary 

WEATHER | Meaning & Definition for UK English | Lexico

What Does Under the Weather Mean? | Writing Explained