snowmelt

[ snoh-melt ]

noun

1. water from snow that is melting or has melted.
2. the amount of such water.

snowmelt

/ ˈsnəʊˌmɛlt /

noun

1. water produced by the melting of snow

Word History and Origins

Origin of snowmelt¹

First recorded in 1925–30; snow + melt ¹

Example Sentences

“For California to benefit from snowmelt in the spring and summer, we need good rainstorms in the fall and early winter to wet the soils in the mountains so that more snowmelt in the spring or summer results in runoff and is not lost to the soils.”

From Los Angeles Times

More than a century ago, when it became clear the booming metropolis 300 miles to the south would very quickly dry up its own meager water supplies, its agents fanned out across the Owens Valley, buying up every acre they could find to secure rights to the precious snowmelt that flows down from the mountains each spring.

From Los Angeles Times

The creeks are sustained by spring-fed streams and snowmelt from Mt.

From Los Angeles Times

In higher elevations, including parts of the High Sierra, you might even find snowmelt mosquitoes, which breed in puddles left from melting snow.

From Los Angeles Times

Thousands of people flock to the windy two-lane Highway 39 past the Morris and San Gabriel dams on their way to the east, west or north forks of the San Gabriel River for camping, hiking, picnics and recreation in the cool snowmelt.

From Los Angeles Times