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steam devil
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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English
Alternative forms
- steamdevil, steam-devil
Etymology
From steam + devil. From being a whirlwind (“devil”) formed from mist (“steam”). Patterned after dust devil.
Noun
steam devil (plural steam devils)
- A spiraling wind caused by rising thermals off a warm body of water's surface that has been enveloped by a layer of very cold air, which also causes the humidity in the thermal to turn to mist, highlighting the whirl of the column. The equivalent of a dustdevil over water.
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