Blizzard

1. A violent snowstorm with winds blowing at a minimum speed of 35 miles (56 kilometers) per hour and visibility of less than one-quarter mile (400 meters) for three hours. The difference between a blizzard and a snowstorm is the strength of the wind, not the amount of snow.
2. A very heavy snowstorm with high winds. The Great Blizzard of 1888, one of the worst blizzards in U.S. history. It dropped 40-50 inches of snow and killed 400 people, mostly in New York.