snowdrifts

Mounded winter aftermath

Snowdrifts are mounds of snow shaped by the wind, piled against obstacles or in sheltered spots.

A single drift can block a doorway or bury a car.

The word evokes winter's accumulating force: The snowdrifts reached the windowsills.

Roads through open country are prone to drifting because wind sweeps snow across flat terrain.

hazard

buried

Placed beneath earth

strandedLeft without means to leave
impassableImpossible to traverse
blockedPassage prevented or impeded

treacherous · whiteout · avalanche · hypothermia · frostbite · disorientation · trapped · suffocation · rescue · survival

accumulation

mounds

Heaps of earth

banksFinancial institutions or riversides
pilesMultiple heaped accumulations
heapsLarge informal quantities

ridges · windblown · accumulation · buildup · dunes · berms · cornices · waves · formations · deposits

landscape

pristine

Pure and untouched

undulatingMoving in waves
sculptedShaped into art
windsweptExposed to strong winds

frozen · tundra · prairie · alpine · arctic · steppe · plains · fields · expanse · terrain

activity

tunneling

Digging underground passages

fortDefensive military installation
iglooDomed snow shelter
shelterProtected place or structure

burrowing · digging · climbing · wading · trudging · snowshoeing · exploring · playing · jumping · hiding

Categories

winterice, cold, frozen, frost, icicle
northern weatherblizzard, blizzards, cold snap, cold, cold snaps
snow scenessnowflakes, blizzards, winter scenes, snowstorms
winter coldcold front, ice, arctic air, frost, icicle
winter landscapeice, frost, powder, glaciers, frozen lakes
Winter Terrainice field, snowpack, frozen tundra, glacier, ice sheet

Opposites

physical state of precipitation accumulation

snowdriftspuddles

Small collected water pools

meltwater · runoff · standing water · mud · slush

landscape surface condition

snowdriftsparched land

Extremely dry territory

sand dunes · desert sands · scorched earth · parched earth · dry heat

accumulation vs. absence

snowdriftsopen terrain

Family

snowdrift, snowdrifted

Familiarity: Top 50,000
Profile: Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Concrete · Everyday, not technical · Rated G