a warming of the eastern tropical Pacific occurring every few years, which alters the weather pattern of the tropics
Word origin
C20: from Spanish: The Child, i.e. Christ, referring to its original occurrence atChristmas time
El Niño in American English
(ɛl ˈninjoʊ)
a warm inshore current annually flowing south along the coast of Ecuador and, about every seven to ten years, extending down the coast of Peru, where it has a devastating effect (El Niño Effect) on weather, crops, fish, etc.
Word origin
Sp, the (Christ) Child: because it occurs near Christmas
Examples of 'El Niño' in a sentence
El Niño
The warm El Niño ocean and big waves had made a lot of surfers happy this summer.