In message , ian writes
In message , Paul Kelly
writes

"Synoptic" has a history in weather forecasting
You might think it case of puffed up words but forecasters use the
term.
http://www.ace.mmu.ac.uk/eae/Weather...ic_Charts.html

Aha, now I understand. I wasn't querying the word "synoptic" on its
own, just its use with "overview" in the same phrase. However,
following your link, I now see that it is indeed reasonable to talk
about a "synoptic overview". Thank you for removing some of my ignorance!

And thank you for encouraging me to find a reference - it was quiet
instructive.


--
PK
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