cumulus
1
6.3
A word used to describe white fluffy clouds with a flat base
- adjective
- /ˈkjuːmjələs/
:
cumuloso
- On a warm afternoon, we often see cumulus clouds forming in the clear blue sky.
- cumulus cloud
Examples
-
The sky was filled with cumulus clouds, creating a beautiful scene on the sunny day.
-
We're in a cumulus cloud.
-
When you say your mental impressions are cloudy, are they cumulus clouds or cirrus?
-
The cumulus clouds floated lazily across the horizon, signaling fair weather ahead.
Synonyms
7.6
Clouds that are large, fluffy, and piled in heaps
refers specifically to the named cloud type with flat base and rounded outline
9.9
A cloud with a round, fluffy shape like cotton in the sky
names the specific cloud variety with dense white form and flat base
Compounds
3
3.9
A large white fluffy cloud with a rounded top and flat base often seen in fair weather
How Fluffy
Surface Forms
cumulus positive
Etymology
Cumulus as an adjective comes from the Latin root cumul- meaning 'heap' or 'pile', the same root you see in cumulative and accumulate, which mean 'to pile up'. So describing clouds as cumulus says they are 'heap-like' and piled up in soft, rounded shapes.