Definition

1. Proper noun:
   • A specific mountain pass in the Sierra Nevada range: Donner Pass is a mountain pass located in northeastern California, near Lake Tahoe, in the United States. It is historically significant due to the tragic events that occurred there in the winter of 1846-1847 involving the Donner Party, a group of American pioneers.

Usage

• Proper noun:
  • The route over Donner Pass is a major transportation corridor.
  • Donner Pass receives heavy snowfall in the winter.
  • The history of Donner Pass is a somber chapter in the story of westward expansion.

Advanced Usage

• Historical Reference: The term is often used to refer specifically to the site of the Donner Party tragedy, where some survivors resorted to cannibalism.
  • The story of the Donner Party is inextricably linked to Donner Pass.

Variants and Related Words

• Donner Party (noun): The group of American pioneers who became trapped by snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains near Donner Pass in the winter of 1846-1847.
  • The Donner Party faced extreme hardship.

Synonyms

• Mountain pass: A general term for a route through a mountain range.
• Summit: The highest point of a mountain pass.

Related Phrases

• To cross Donner Pass: To travel over this specific geographic location.
  • They planned to cross Donner Pass before the first snow.

Related Idioms

Noun

1. a mountain pass in northeastern California near Lake Tahoe; site where in 1844 some members of an emigrant party survived by eating those who had died