hoar frost

Meaning

1. (countable, uncountable) Originally, any frozen dew forming a white deposit on exposed surfaces.
2. (countable, specifically, uncountable) Water vapour which has undergone deposition or desublimation (“transformation directly into ice crystals without first turning into liquid water”) when the air is cold and moist to form a white deposit on exposed surfaces.

Synonyms

white frost

rime

hoarfrost

frost

hoar-frost

dew

snow

❄️

Translations

πάχνη

άσπρος αποτυχία

gelée blanche

brina

pruina

rijm

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈhɔː fɹɒst/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: hore frost

Inherited from Old English: hār

Inherited from Old English: frost

In summary

PIE word
*prustós
From Middle English hore frost, horfrost [and other forms], from hor (“grey; greyish-white”, adjective) (from Old English hār (“grey”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ḱeh₃- (“darkness; shadow”)) + frost (“cold spell, freezing weather, frost; hoar-frost; rime”) (from Old English frost, forst, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *prustós (“frost”)). The English word is analysable as hoar (“greyish-white; white”, adjective) + frost.