Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A small cumulus or alto-cumulus cloud upon which the sun is shining so that the top warms and rises rapidly, while the cooler bottom follows slowly, the whole cloud assuming the form of a rising balloon, until it reaches some upper level where it overflows and forms a thin stratum of false cirrus, alto-stratus, or analogous cloud.
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word balloon-cloud.
Examples
-
And over all ascended the horrid roar of ruin beyond description, while from that misshapen balloon-cloud, with its flattened top, the electric fluid shone and flashed, now in great sheets as of flame, then in vicious spurts and darts as though innumerable snakes of fire had been turned loose by the winds.
The Lost City 1898
-
And over all ascended the horrid roar of ruin beyond description, while from that misshapen balloon-cloud, with its flattened top, the electric fluid shone and flashed, now in great sheets as of flame, then in vicious spurts and darts as though innumerable snakes of fire had been turned loose by the winds.
The Lost City 1878
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.