snow blindness

noun

: inflammation and photophobia caused by exposure of the eyes to ultraviolet rays reflected from snow or ice
snow-blind adjective
or snow-blinded

Examples of snow blindness in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web It’s also known as snow blindness or welder’s flash when it’s caused by sunlight reflecting off snow in arctic conditions or the light from a welder’s torch. Daniel Wu, Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2024 In airy PS 64 Frederick Law Olmsted, in affluent, white north Buffalo, 22 would-be Arctic explorers wrestled with how to build a shelter if their team leader had frostbite and snow blindness. NBC News, 14 Oct. 2020 Another challenge for those who lived in Arctic regions was snow blindness. Emma Yasinski, Discover Magazine, 16 Mar. 2021 Protecting your eyes from snow blindness is no joke. Mike Richard, Men's Health, 16 Sep. 2022 This is part of the snow blindness created by oppression in this country by a dominant group. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 23 Mar. 2022 Of all the horrors of a 19th-century European voyage to the Arctic—noses and cheeks turned necrotic by frostbite, snow blindness, sea madness, broken bones badly knit—perhaps most ghastly was scurvy. Bathsheba Demuth, The Atlantic, 22 Sep. 2021 The second climber, Pakistani-American Puwei Liu, 55, reached the Hillary Step at 28,800 feet before suffering exhaustion and snow blindness, a condition in which a person loses much of their vision in the bright snow. Alan Arnette, Outside Online, 13 May 2021 Puwei Liu, 55, suffered from snow blindness and exhaustion while descending from Hillary Step, between the mountain at South Col and the summit, a spokesperson for Seven Summit Treks, which organized the expedition, confirms to PEOPLE. Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE.com, 13 May 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'snow blindness.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1748, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of snow blindness was in 1748

Dictionary Entries Near snow blindness

Cite this Entry

“Snow blindness.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snow%20blindness. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

snow blindness

noun
: inflammation and inability to stand light caused by glare reflected from snow or ice

Medical Definition

snow blindness

noun
: inflammation and photophobia caused by exposure of the eyes to ultraviolet rays reflected from snow or ice
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