plume

plume

plume / ploōm/ • n. a long, soft feather or arrangement of feathers used by a bird for display or worn by a person for ornament: a hat with a jaunty ostrich plume. ∎  Zool. a part of an animal's body that resembles a feather: the antennae are divided into large feathery plumes. ∎  a long cloud of smoke or vapor resembling a feather as it spreads from its point of origin: as he spoke, the word was accompanied by a white plume of breath. ∎  a mass of material, typically a pollutant, spreading from a source: a radioactive plume. ∎  (also mantle plume) Geol. a localized column of hot magma rising by convection in the mantle, believed to cause volcanic activity in hot spots, such as the Hawaiian Islands, away from plate margins. • v. 1. [intr.] spread out in a shape resembling a feather: smoke plumed from the chimneys. ∎  [tr.] decorate with or as if with feathers: [as adj.] (plumed) a plumed cap. 2. (plume oneself) chiefly archaic (of a bird) preen itself. ∎ fig. feel a great sense of self-satisfaction about something: she plumed herself on being cosmopolitan. DERIVATIVES: plume·less adj. plume·like / -ˌlīk/ adj. plum·er·y / -mərē/ n.

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"plume." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"plume." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-plume.html

"plume." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-plume.html

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plume

plume
1. A cloud of gas, liquid, aerosols, or particles orginating from within a planet. The term is most commonly used for the gas and aerosols emitted by a volcano that drift downwind. The plumes above the erupting volcanoes of Io are the largest and most spectacular such examples, some rising to 280km altitude and depositing material 500 km from the vent. The plumes seen rising from the surface of Triton by Voyager 2 appear to be from geyser-like eruptions.

2. A ray‐like feature seen in the Sun's atmosphere. see coronal plume.

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"plume." A Dictionary of Astronomy. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"plume." A Dictionary of Astronomy. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O80-plume.html

"plume." A Dictionary of Astronomy. 1997. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O80-plume.html

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Plume

Plume

anything resembling a plume of feathers or a tuft of waving hair.

Examples : plume of distinction, 1848; of feathers, 1711; curling plumes of hair, 1870; of smoke, 1878; plumes of the woodland, 1859.

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"Plume." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Plume." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505301133.html

"Plume." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505301133.html

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plume

plume plumed serpent a mythical creature depicted as part bird, part snake, in particular Quetzalcóatl, a god of the Toltec and Aztec civilizations having this form.

See also borrowed plumes at borrow.

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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "plume." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "plume." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-plume.html

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "plume." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-plume.html

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plume

plume feather (now spec.). XIV. — (O)F.:— L. plūma.
Hence vb. furnish with plumes XV; refl. of a bird, to dress its feathers XVIII.

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T. F. HOAD. "plume." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "plume." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-plume.html

T. F. HOAD. "plume." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-plume.html

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plume

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"plume." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"plume." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-plume.html

"plume." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-plume.html

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

Smoke plume evacuation in the OR. (operating room)
Magazine article from: AORN Journal; 3/1/1997
Gulf oil spill plume stretches 21 miles, not breaking down much.(Environment)
Newspaper article from: The Christian Science Monitor; 8/19/2010
Development of an axisymmetric thermal plume between vertical plates.
Magazine article from: American Journal of Applied Sciences; 9/1/2007

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