snowfall
part of speech
noun (a snowfall, snowfalls; snowfall — uncountable amount)
meaning for a pupil
1) Snow falling from the sky, a time when snow comes down. tree →
2) The amount of snow that falls in a place over a certain time, measured in centimetres or inches. tree →
sense in the lessons
In science and geography lessons snowfall is part of weather and climate: maps and charts show average snowfall, and pupils compare places or months. In weather reports it tells people whether roads may be dangerous. In maths it appears in measuring and data problems: total snowfall, difference between two days. Phrases: «heavy snowfall», «light snowfall», «annual snowfall», «a fresh snowfall».
examples
- There was a heavy snowfall last night and the school was closed. tree →
- The town gets about two metres of snowfall each winter. tree →
- We built a snowman after the first snowfall of the year. tree →
- The chart shows the snowfall in each month. tree →
- On Monday there were 12 cm of snowfall and on Tuesday 5 cm, so 17 cm in all. tree →
- Heavy snowfall can block roads and bring down power lines. tree →
- Light snowfall covered the garden like sugar. tree →
- Canada has more snowfall than New Zealand's North Island. tree →
note
It is one word. Countable when it means a single event («two big snowfalls»), uncountable when it means an amount («a lot of snowfall»). In maths, snowfall amounts are added to get a total, or subtracted to compare; check the units (cm, mm, inches). Do not confuse it with «snowflake» (one piece of snow) or «snowdrift» (snow piled up by wind).
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «snowfall» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.