Well attestedNamed from the place
Alberta clipper
noun · first attested 20th century
One weather term, two borrowings: a Canadian province and a racing sailing ship.
A fast-moving winter storm that forms in western Canada and races southeast across the northern United States with wind, cold and light snow.
Record
- Relationship
- Named from the place
- Confidence
- Well attestedThe place link is the standard scholarly account.
- Attested
- 20th century
- Part of speech
- noun
Explanations here are written for this atlas. Dictionary text is not copied; the sources are linked so the claim can be checked.
- Step 1
Alberta
- In English
Alberta clipper
Forecasters named these systems for Alberta, where the lee of the Rockies spins them up, and for the clipper ships whose speed they seemed to match. They cross the mountains wrung dry, so the drama is usually the temperature crash rather than the snowfall.
Also pinned to Alberta
1 more from the same place
Canada
All 22 entries 20 more words from Canada
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