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  3. General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters

初雪

English translation: First snow(fall) / first fall of snow

00:40 Jan 9, 2020
Chinese to English translations [PRO]
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
Chinese term or phrase: 初雪
2020年的初雪，apart from "the first snow", any other translations? I came across the phrase "virgin snow" which sounds Chinglish to me.
Jinfeng Mao
Australia
Local time: 20:04
English translation:First snow(fall) / first fall of snow
Explanation:
There are a few options in this context:

*"The first snow of 2020" - the most common and general usage
*"The first snowfall of 2020" - more technical/meteorological usage, but still quite common
*"first fall of snow" - less common and more for literary and poetic contexts (e.g. "2020 saw its first fall of snow yesterday")

"Virgin snow" means snow that has fallen but is yet untouched, which doesn't seem to quite fit this context.
Selected response from:

Gareth Callagy
United Kingdom
Local time: 11:04
Grading comment
Thank you for the detailed explanation.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
5 +1the first snow
Bruce Guo
5 +1First snow(fall) / first fall of snow
Gareth Callagy
5“ First off ” snowfall
Mohammad Rostami
4first snowfall
jyuan_us


Discussion entries: 3





  

Answers


3 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
first snowfall


Explanation:
Winter 2019-20 forecast: Farmers' Almanac expects bitter cold ...
https://www.lehighvalleylive.com › weather › 2019/08 › winter-2019-20-f...
Aug 26, 2019 - Ice and snow formations on the Lehigh and Delaware rivers at Easton ... On average, the Lehigh Valley gets its first snowfall totaling at least an ...

jyuan_us
United States
Local time: 06:04
Does not meet criteria
Native speaker of: Native in ChineseChinese
PRO pts in category: 71
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you for your reply.


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Mohammad Rostami: Your explanation is respectful and true , but the asker know the word start snowfall he is looking for more deep word for the word “ start”... This kind of starting is not a virigin start ... Can can be used for any time. If you compare start & start off
6 hrs
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5 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +1
the first snow


Explanation:
2006年有部电影叫First Snow，1998你那也有部动画叫The First Snow of Winter

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Note added at 5小时 (2020-01-09 06:35:02 GMT)
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补充：
经典优美英语散文:First Snow初雪
https://wenku.baidu.com/view/43c78e49b7360b4c2e3f648d.html


    Reference: http://wjla.com/weather/stormwatch7-weather-blog/tracking-th...
    https://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2020/01/07/maryland-weather-slushy-mess-in-baltimore-snow-out-west/
Bruce Guo
China
Local time: 13:04
Meets criteria
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in ChineseChinese, Native in EnglishEnglish
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you for your reply.


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Mohammad Rostami: The first snow is suggested by the asker .
4 hrs
  -> my mistake, I didn't notice that.
agree  David Lin: Just to reaffirm the asker's and other's similar reckoning.
11 hrs
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4 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
“ First off ” snowfall


Explanation:
Best equivalent word as i know in UK is the word “ first off” snow.
in the first place : before anything else.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/first off


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 10 hrs (2020-01-09 10:48:15 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/first off

Example sentence(s):
  • If the snow fall is not heavy you can use “first off snow flurry”
Mohammad Rostami
United States
Meets criteria
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in Persian (Farsi)Persian (Farsi), Native in EnglishEnglish
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you for your reply.


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  jyuan_us: The source is a straight forward term, which just doesn't need to be made so complicated.
14 hrs
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17 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +1
First snow(fall) / first fall of snow


Explanation:
There are a few options in this context:

*"The first snow of 2020" - the most common and general usage
*"The first snowfall of 2020" - more technical/meteorological usage, but still quite common
*"first fall of snow" - less common and more for literary and poetic contexts (e.g. "2020 saw its first fall of snow yesterday")

"Virgin snow" means snow that has fallen but is yet untouched, which doesn't seem to quite fit this context.

Gareth Callagy
United Kingdom
Local time: 11:04
Meets criteria
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 4
Grading comment
Thank you for the detailed explanation.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  David Lin
41 mins
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