Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
🙏 A religious penitent ❄️ A snow spike
penitente

penitente

9.9
Tall thin spikes of hard snow or ice that form on high mountain slopes
  • noun
  • /ˌpɛnɪˈtɛnteɪ/
  • Specialized
translation icon : penitente
  • The penitente stood tall against the blue sky.

Examples

  • Sunlight and wind shape the unique penitentes that cover the slopes in the Andes.

  • The mountaineers had to navigate carefully through the field of penitentes on the high-altitude glacier.

  • Photographers are fascinated by the dramatic appearance of penitentes rising from the snow.

  • Look at that penitente over there!

  • The mountain's slopes were dotted with penitentes, standing tall against the clear blue sky.

  • Hikers were amazed by the sight of the penitentes that formed in the high-altitude snowfields.

  • As we climbed higher in the Andes, we encountered fascinating penitentes shaped by the wind and sun.

Surface Forms

penitente singular
penitentes plural

Etymology

Penitente was also used for the tall, thin spikes of snow because early Spanish speakers thought the rows of sharp peaks looked like lines of penitents — people doing penance in long robes. That's why these ice formations are called penitentes today.