32 Rarely Used Meteorological Terms

A yowe-tremmle—meaning “ewe-tremble” in old Scottish dialect—refers to a chilly or wet spell in late June, cold enough to make newly-sheared sheep shiver or “tremmle.”

No matter if you’re soaking up the sun or caught in an unexpected rainstorm, the English language’s hidden gems offer the ideal term to describe your current weather situation.

1. Armogan

Likely originating from an older French dialect term, armogan is 19th-century nautical slang for ideal weather conditions, especially those perfect for embarking on a voyage.

2. Bengy

Pronounced “Benji,” this term from old southeast English dialect describes skies that are gloomy or hinting at rain. One theory suggests it may come from benge, an older term meaning “to drink excessively.”

3. Blenky

The term blenky refers to a very light snowfall. It likely originates from blenks, an 18th-century word for ashes or cinders.

4. Bows of Promise

In Victorian English, rainbows were referred to as “bows of promise,” inspired by the narrative in the Book of Genesis.

5. Cairies

Cairies are fast-moving clouds. This old Scots dialect term, cairies, stems from cairy (a Scots variant of “carry”), which means a burden or something to be transported.

6. Drouth

An old Irish-English term, drouth describes ideal weather for drying clothes. Likely linked to a Scots word meaning extreme thirst or a heavy drinker, it was adopted into American English in the 1800s, eventually becoming synonymous with drought.

7. Flench

When the weather flenches, it appears as though it might get better later, but ultimately doesn’t improve.

8. Foxy

As per the Oxford English Dictionary, foxy weather is deceptively bright—appearing sunny and clear but actually bitterly cold.

9. Gleamy

When the weather is gleamy, it alternates between sunshine and clouds, described in a 19th-century glossary as “unpredictable and sporadic.”

10. Gleen

A gleen refers to a sudden flash of warm sunlight. Originating in the 17th century or earlier, it likely connects to the Scandinavian term glene, meaning a clear section of the sky.

11. Halta-Dance

Besides describing frantic movement, halta-dance also refers to a shimmering heat haze.

12. Hen-Scartins

This northern English dialect term describes wispy, elongated clouds believed to predict rain. Its literal translation is “chicken scratches.”

13. Hunch-Weather

Hunch-weather is an 18th-century term for unpleasant weather—such as drizzle or strong winds—that forces people to bend forward as they walk.

14. Lawrence

An old legend claims Saint Lawrence of Rome was martyred on a scorching gridiron. While this is likely untrue (the Latin phrase passus est, meaning “he suffered,” may have been misread as assus est, “he was roasted”), his story has inspired folklore and art. He’s now the patron saint of cooks and restaurateurs, and the name Lawrence has been used in American dialect since the early 1900s to describe a shimmering heat haze.

15. Mare’s Tails

Mare’s tails are cirrus clouds—delicate, high-altitude streaks of cloud—believed to indicate fair weather ahead.

16. Messenger

A solitary sunbeam piercing through dense clouds is also referred to as a messenger.

17. Mokey

Moke is an old northern English term for the mesh in a fishing net, leading to the word mokey (or mochy), which describes gloomy, overcast, or misty weather.

18. Monkey’s Wedding

In South African slang, a monkey’s wedding refers to a “sun-shower,” where rain falls while the sun shines. Its origin is unclear: some suggest it comes from monkey’s wedding-breakfast, meaning chaos, or it might be a loose translation of the Portuguese phrase casamento de raposa, meaning “a vixen’s wedding,” used to describe the same phenomenon.

19. Moonbroch

This old Scottish term describes a foggy ring of cloud around the moon at night, believed to signal approaching bad weather.

20. Queen’s Weather

In 1851, Charles Dickens noted that “the sky was clear; a bright sun gave it a joyful quality, which—owing to the fortunate weather Her Majesty enjoys during her travels or public appearances—has become proverbial.” This proverb refers to queen’s weather, a 19th-century term for sunny skies, inspired by Queen Victoria’s knack for bringing good weather on her official outings.

21. Pikels

Pikels refer to heavy rain, either in large drops or sheets. The term pikel originates from an old Lancashire dialect word for a pitchfork, and the phrase “to rain pikels with the tines downwards” describes torrential downpours.

22. and 23. Smuir and Blind Smuir

Smuir, an old Scots term meaning “to choke” or “smother,” was also used to describe oppressively hot weather. A blind smuir, on the other hand, refers to a snowdrift.

24. Sugar-Weather

Sugar-weather is a 19th-century Canadian term describing warm days paired with chilly nights—ideal conditions for maple trees to produce sap.

25. Sunblink

This 17th-century Scots word refers to a brief flash of sunlight …

26. Sunwade

… and sunwade is an old Yorkshire term for a faint cloud layer surrounding the sun.

27. Swullocking

This southeast English dialect word means “oppressively hot” or “muggy.” If the sky appears swullocking, it suggests an approaching thunderstorm.

28. Thunder-Head

Herman Melville used the term thunder-head in Moby-Dick (1851). It describes a dense, rounded cloud formation on the horizon, often signaling an incoming storm.

29. and 30. Twirlblast and Twirlwind

Both twirlblast and twirlwind are 18th-century terms used to describe tornadoes.

31. Water-Dogs

These refer to isolated small rainclouds suspended beneath a larger cloud formation.

32. Wethergaw

Gaw is an archaic term for a drainage channel or gutter, whose U-shaped profile likely inspired the Scots word wethergaw—a poetic name for a rainbow. As noted in the Scottish Mountaineering Club Journal, it can also signify “[a] fleeting moment of light and beauty amidst days of dreariness and dullness.”