acid rain
16
3.3
- noun
- /ˈæsɪd reɪn/
- Specialized
:
lluvia ácida
- One component of the study examined the public's knowledge of acid rain and the hole in the ozone layer.
- acid rain pollution
- acid rain problem
- effects of acid rain
It picks up sulfur and stuff from smog and air pollution, and it falls in the form of rain, acid rain.
- It picks up sulfur and stuff from smog and air pollution, and it falls in the form of rain, acid rain.
Examples
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I'm working on the acid rain problem.
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The pollution in the atmosphere causes acid rain that harms many ecosystems.
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Canada cannot protect itself from acid rain without the collaboration of the United States.
Academic text (1990) -
The items covered environmental issues such as acid rain, the greenhouse effect, and future sources of energy.
Academic text (1996) -
The New York Times published an article on acid rain in June 1974.
Academic text (1993) -
Students in the district have become actively involved in an acid rain study.
Academic text (1994) -
Germany, which has seen widespread destruction to its forests because of acid rain, also opposes the American approach.
Academic text (1999) -
To make matters worse, acid rain from both domestic and foreign sources degraded the country's forests.
Academic text (1995) -
Nuclear power permits us to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels... and to avoid environmental pollutants that cause acid rain and global warming.
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Burning coal carries well-known risks: acid rain, particulate pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions, to name the main ones.
Academic text (2011)
Synonyms
Rain or snow that contains acid because of pollution from factories and cars
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'rain made acidic by pollution' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'acid' (having low pH) with 'rain' (precipitation); the noun-noun composition follows normal English patterns. This concept is also lexicalized similarly in many languages (e.g., Spanish 'lluvia ácida'), so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words will likely understand the MWE.
Etymology
Acid rain comes from the clear picture of acid in the rain: chemicals from factories and cars mix with cloud water and make the rain slightly acidic. So acid rain today means 'rain that harms trees, lakes, and buildings because of pollution'.