n.
Variant: also sci · roc · co
Pronunciation: sh ə - ' rä-( ˌ )k ō , s ə -
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -cos
Etymology: Italian scirocco, sirocco, alteration of Old Italian scilocco, from Arabic dialect (Maghreb) š l ō q southeast wind, alteration of Arabic shal ū q, shul ū q
Date: 1617
1 a : a hot dust-laden wind from the Libyan deserts that blows on the northern Mediterranean coast chiefly in Italy, Malta, and Sicily b : a warm moist oppressive southeast wind in the same regions
2 : a hot or warm wind of cyclonic origin from an arid or heated region