Weather Vocabulary Topic vocabulary for the IELTS exam * Important Do not try and learn this list of weather vocabulary. Identify the vocabulary you find useful for answering practise questions about the weather. Record these in your vocabulary notebook and practise using them regularly. Set 1: Key definitions weather – the temperature or conditions outside with regard to heat, cloudiness, dryness, sunshine, wind, rain, etc. - The weather can change very quickly up on the moor, so make sure you take your waterproofs when you go walking. climate – the general weather conditions usually found in a particular area. - The climate in the Andean mountains of Peru is very different to that found on the coast. climate change – a change in global or regional temperature patterns. - Scientists believe that climate change will lead to more extreme weather in the future. global warming – a gradual increase in world temperatures caused by polluting gases, such as carbon dioxide, which are collecting in the air around the Earth and preventing heat from escaping into space. - It’s not too late to reverse the effects of global warming but we must act right now. Set 2: Seasons season – time of year characterized by certain weather. - In Europe, we have four seasons but in some parts of the world, they have only two, such as the Philippines which has a wet season and a dry season. winter – the coldest season of the year, December to February north of the equator and from and June to August in the southern hemisphere. - I don’t like the winter as it’s very cold and there isn’t much daylight. spring – the season between winter and summer when the weather becomes warmer and vegetation starts to grow again. - In spring I love to watch nature come to life again; to see leaves sprouting on the trees and lambs in the fields. summer – the warmest season of the year, June to August north of the equator and from and December to February in the southern hemisphere. - We can’t wait for summer and are already planning the outdoor activities we’re going to enjoy in the nice weather. autumn – the season between summer and winter when the leaves change colour and fall from the trees and it becomes cooler. - Autumn is a great time for hiking as the weather is often pleasant and the trees look stunning as their leaves change to red, yellow and orange. fall – Term for autumn in American English. - In the US, fall is the time for celebrating Halloween and Thanksgiving. Copyright © 2018 Ielts Jacky www.ieltsjacky.com Set 3: Snowy weather snow – water vapour frozen into ice crystals and falling to the ground as white flakes. - I live in a hot climate so we don’t get snow but I’ve seen it in photos and it looks so beautiful. snowflake – a single particle of snow. - Did you know that every single snowflake is different which is quite amazing? snowing – when snow is falling to the ground. - It was so exciting to wake up this morning to find that it was snowing. snowy – when it’s snowing or things are covered with snow. - Children love snowy weather as it often means that the schools are closed. fresh snow – snow that has recently fallen. - The fresh snow glistened in the moonlight, the pristine carpet of white not marked by a single footprint. heavy snow – when a lot of snow falls. - The weather forecast predicted heavy snow so we got out our sledge ready to have some fun. a blanket of snow – a complete covering of snow. - It snowed heavily all afternoon and the countryside was soon covered in a blanket of snow. snowstorm – when a large amount of snow falls, often mixed with wind. - I was still at work when the snowstorm hit and had to sleep in my office as the buses were cancelled and I couldn’t get home. blizzard – a storm with very heavy snow and strong winds. - It’s dangerous driving on the roads in a blizzard. whiteout – snowfall that is so heavy that it’s almost impossible to see anything. - I was so glad I decided not to drive to the shops as the light snowfall soon turned into whiteout conditions. flurry – very light snowfall. - The children were hoping for heavy snow so they could make a snowman but all we got were light flurries. avalanche – a large mass of snow and ice sliding rapidly down a mountainside. - It was reported that five skiers were caught in the avalanche and rescuers are trying to dig them out. snowdrift – a bank of deep snow formed by the wind. - The road was blocked by snowdrifts blown by the strong winds. sleet – a mixture of rain and snow. - The sleet made the pavements slippery and it was difficult not to fall over. slush – partly melted snow - As the temperature rose slightly, the glistening white snow turned to mucky slush. Copyright © 2018 Ielts Jacky www.ieltsjacky.com Set 4: Cold weather below freezing – below zero degrees Celsius or 32 degrees Fahrenheit. - I put on a thick coat, gloves, hat and a scarf before going outside as it was well below freezing. ice – very cold water in a solid state; you only see it when the temperature is below freezing. - I had to clear ice from my car windscreen before I could drive to meet my friend. icy – covered in ice; slippery because of ice. - It’s better for elderly people to stay indoors when it’s icy as they can easily fall over and break a bone. frozen – when the temperature is so cold that water has turned to ice or expression to mean feeling very cold. - It was so cold that the surface of the pond was frozen. - Ingrid got absolutely frozen watching her son’s team playing football. freezing cold – very cold. - Bruno was reluctant to take the dog for a walk as it was freezing cold outside. bitterly cold – extremely cold. - The sun was shining but there was a bitterly cold wind blowing. hail – pieces of ice falling from the sky; frozen rain. - I hate being out in hail because it really hurt when it strikes your face. frost – ice crystals on a frozen surface. - I could tell from the frost on the ground that the temperature overnight had fallen below freezing. hard frost – when it gets very cold overnight and everything is covered with thick frost. - The hard frost turned everything white and made the garden look like a magical frozen wonderland. Jack Frost – mythical character who comes out at night and lays out frost. - We woke in the morning to see that Jack Frost had been in the night. frostbite – injury to any part of the body caused by overexposure to extreme cold. - Frostbite is one of the greatest dangers faced by Arctic explorers. to dress up warm – to wear warm clothes to protect yourself against wintry conditions. - If you go out to play in the snow, be sure to dress up warm. to melt – the process by which snow or ice changes to water as the temperature rises above freezing. - After a week of freezing conditions, the temperature rose and the snow finally began to melt. a cold spell / cold snap – a short period of cold weather - The weather is usually mild at this time of year but the forecasters say we’re in for a cold spell next week. - The sudden cold snap had us searching for our hats, gloves and scarves. chilly – uncomfortably cold. - Fuyuko was feeling a bit chilly so she turned the heating up. Copyright © 2018 Ielts Jacky www.ieltsjacky.com Set 5: Rainy weather precipitation – water that falls to the earth in the form of rain, hail, mist, sleet, or snow. - The average annual precipitation in London is 23 inches (58 cm) which makes it drier than New York which has an average of 50 inches (127cm) of rain per year. heavy rain – intense rainfall. - The heavy rain kept the children indoors all day despite it being the weekend. torrential rain – very heavy rain. - The torrential rain was making driving conditions hazardous. driving rain – heavy rain mixed with strong wind. - We walked on through the driving rain, wanting to get home as quickly as possible. to pour – to rain heavily. - It was pouring with rain when I set off for the bus stop. downpour – heavy shower of rain. - Christian got caught in a downpour on his way to the party but fortunately had an umbrella with him. cloudburst – sudden rainfall that it over quickly. - The sudden cloudburst took them by surprise and they had to run for shelter. raining cats and dogs – raining heavily. - What miserable weather. It’s been raining cats and dogs all day. to get drenched / soaked – to get very wet. - Ekrem left her coat at home and got drenched in the cloudburst. - The children had great fun playing in the rain but got soaked to the skin. rainy day – a day when it rains a lot. - I quite like a rainy day as I can be lazy and cuddle up by the fire with a good book. a drop of rain – a small amount of rain. - There was a drop of rain in the afternoon but it didn’t spoil our day out. drizzle – very light rain. - There was a bit of drizzle in the air as we set off on our walk but it didn’t come to anything. gentle rain – light rain. - The gentle rain was quite welcome at the end of a long, hot day as it really cooled the air.