firn

noun

: névé

Examples of firn in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The oldest snow heats and cools, maybe losing some mass from some melting (or sublimating -- going straight to gas), but the snow will condense into granules of ice called firn and then ice and finally glacial ice. Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 15 Aug. 2022 Ice and firn, or dense snow leftover from previous seasons, also disappeared from the ridge. Kasha Patel, Anchorage Daily News, 18 Aug. 2022 More snow compacts the firn and it is gradually turned into glacial ice. John Schandelmeier, Anchorage Daily News, 2 Apr. 2022 But some research has suggested that the firn can fill up too quickly during years with high melt rates. Chelsea Harvey, Scientific American, 2 Aug. 2019 The firn layer in the ice sheet, the boundary between snow and ice, is heating up and becoming denser. Umair Irfan, Vox, 8 Dec. 2018

Word History

Etymology

German, from Old High German firni old; akin to Old English faran

First Known Use

1853, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of firn was in 1853

Dictionary Entries Near firn

Cite this Entry

“Firn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/firn. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on firn

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!