climber
Americannoun
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a person or thing that climbs.
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a climbing plant.
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a device to assist in climbing, as a climbing iron.
noun
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a person or thing that climbs
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a plant that lacks rigidity and grows upwards by twining, scrambling, or clinging with tendrils and suckers
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short for social climber
Etymology
Origin of climber
late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; see origin at climb, -er 1
Explanation
A climber is a person who hikes up steep, rocky mountains and hills. If you want to be a mountain climber, you should start with small ones before tackling Mount Everest. Climbers pull themselves up the steep, craggy sides of mountains or practice on rock walls at the gym. A person who aspires to belong to a fancier social group is another kind of climber: "He's hanging out with the rich kids again — I didn't realize he was such a climber." When you're talking about plants, a climber is anything vine-like that grows up structures: "That rose is a climber. It'll cover your fence by the end of the summer."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Vin put Cary to work on the Climber, and showed me around their beautiful home.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 3, 2022
He released an autobiography in Czech titled, “Adam Ondra: A Climber of Body and Soul,” and held a book signing at a large bookstore.
From New York Times • Mar. 6, 2020
That task fell to Wilmer Sánchez Rodríguez, a project member from Peru and an intern at the American Climber Science Program in Eldora, Colorado, and local climbers whom the researchers had hired as porters.
From Nature • Sep. 3, 2019
Climber, writer and film-maker Dave MacLeod, who accompanied Natalie on her first ascent of Pink Panther, has been walking and climbing in Scotland's hills for 25 years.
From BBC • Mar. 18, 2019
"First Prize for Best Climber," she read on the ribbon attached to a tree trunk.
From "All About Sam" by Lois Lowry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
