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Glite Dictionary
🏜️ A crescent dune 🛡️ A fort shape 🪟 A curved window
lunette

lunette

1 9.9
A crescent-shaped sand hill formed on the downwind side of a dry lake
  • noun
  • /luˈnɛt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : luneta
  • Scientists studied the formation of lunettes to understand wind patterns in arid environments.

Examples

  • The desert landscape was dotted with several lunettes near the edge of the dry lake.

  • The lunette formed beautifully along the dry lake bed.

  • Satellite images revealed a series of lunettes curving along the ancient playa.

  • Many lunettes can be found in the Mojave Desert.

  • The hikers admired the stunning lunettes formed by the wind on the dry lakebed.

  • In the desert, we encountered several lunettes that created beautiful patterns on the landscape.

  • During our exploration, we noted how the lunettes shaped the terrain around the ancient playa.

Synonyms

dune
vslunette
69 2.7

A hill of sand that wind makes on a beach or in a desert

forms specifically on the downwind side of dry lakes not generally near coasts
sand dune
vslunette
14 3.2

A hill of sand that wind makes near a beach or in a desert

forms on the downwind side of dry lakes rather than any waterfront area
barchan
vslunette
  • Specialized
9.9

A crescent sand dune moved across deserts by wind

forms specifically on the downwind side of dry lakes rather than open desert

How Curved

lunette
  • Specialized
1 9.9
dune
69 2.7
mound
40 1.7

Surface Forms

lunette singular
lunettes plural

Morphology

lunette = lune (semi-transparent) = lune + ette

The word is structurally clear as 'lune' + '-ette', but the dune sense is a lexicalized technical term rather than a fully obvious composition for most learners.

Etymology

Lunette comes from the French lune 'moon' with the small ending -ette, meaning 'little moon'. This explains the name for crescent sand dunes called lunettes, because they look like small moons on the edge of a dry lake.