stratus
1
5.9
- noun
- /ˈstrætəs/
- Specialized
:
estrato
- In the early morning, a blanket of stratus clouds hung low, obscuring the sun and making the air feel cooler.
- stratus clouds
Examples
-
But the next afternoon, a pewter lid of stratus clouds seemed ready to burst with the rain they contained.
Fiction book (1992) -
Just in time, too: a bank of dark stratus clouds began to sweep in from the southern horizon.
Academic text (2011) -
Tonight, the lights of the great city of Hong Kong, out of sight on the north side of the island's spine, illuminated a low deck of stratus clouds with a dull glow.
Fiction book (2001) -
It was a bright gray day, the sun shining through hazy white stratus, a silver circle shedding various degrees of shadowless light.
Fiction book (1990) -
The CV-580 flew out of Pietersburg for the first four weeks of the Safari 2000 dry season campaign and was based in Walvis Bay, Namibia, for the final two weeks to study the stratus clouds that form off Namibia.
Academic text (2000) -
The forecast predicted that thick stratus clouds would cover the sky, leading to a gray and gloomy day.
-
As we watched the sunset, the stratus clouds created a soft, diffused light that muted the evening colors.
Synonyms
A low, flat gray cloud layer that often covers the sky and brings light drizzle
Compounds
- Specialized
A low, flat gray cloud layer that often covers the sky and brings light drizzle
How Thick
- Specialized
1
8.0
- Specialized
1
5.9
- Specialized
- Specialized
- Specialized
2
7.0
Surface Forms
Etymology
The word stratus comes from a Latin word meaning 'to spread out' and is related to stratum, a word for a 'layer'. So a stratus cloud is like a low, gray 'layer' that spreads across the sky.