MEANING
A water layer in which temperature drops rapidly with depth between warmer surface water and colder water below.
Use it for
describing a sudden cooling during a dive; explaining layers of ocean temperature; distinguishing temperature structure from salt concentrationNames a sharp temperature-transition layer rather than any cold water or a change in salinity. Writing functions: Water-column temperature structure.
Words that belong together
- a seasonal thermocline
- below the thermocline
- thermocline depth
On the page
The diver felt the cold immediately after passing through the thermocline.
The instrument recorded a sharp thermocline beneath the mixed surface layer.
Word forms
- Base
- thermocline
Usage notes
Countable noun: thermocline, thermoclines. Register: technical. Commonness: moderately common in ocean and diving contexts (dictionary-informed qualitative editorial estimate; not a measured frequency).
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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