climb

[ klahym ]

/ klaɪm /

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See synonyms for: climb / climbed / climbing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)

to go up or ascend, especially by using the hands and feet or feet only: to climb up a ladder.

to rise slowly by or as if by continued effort: The car laboriously climbed to the top of the mountain.

to ascend or rise: The plane climbed rapidly and we were soon at 35,000 feet. Temperatures climbed into the 80s yesterday.

to slope upward: The road climbs steeply up to the house.

to ascend by twining or by means of tendrils, adhesive tissues, etc., as a plant: The ivy climbed to the roof.

to proceed or move by using the hands and feet, especially on an elevated place; crawl: to climb along a branch; to climb around on the roof.

to ascend in prominence, fortune, etc.: From lowly beginnings he climbed to the highest office in the land.

verb (used with object)

to ascend, go up, or get to the top of, especially by the use of the hands and feet or feet alone or by continuous or strenuous effort:to climb a rope; to climb the stairs; to climb a mountain.

to go to the top of and over: The prisoners climbed the wall and escaped.

noun

a climbing; an ascent by climbing: It was a long climb to the top of the hill.

a place to be climbed: That peak is quite a climb.

Verb Phrases

climb down,

to descend, especially by using both hands and feet.
to retreat, as from an indefensible opinion or position: He was forced to climb down from his untenable position.

climb the walls. wall (def. 15).

OPPOSITES FOR climb

1, 8 descend.

10 descent.

See antonyms for climb on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

SHALL WE PLAY A "SHALL" VS. "SHOULD" CHALLENGE?

Should you take this quiz on “shall” versus “should”? It should prove to be a quick challenge!

Question 1 of 6

Which form is used to state an obligation or duty someone has?

shall

should

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of climb

before 1000; Middle English climben,Old English climban; cognate with Dutch, German klimmen; akin to clamber

synonym study for climb

8. Climb, ascend, mount, scale imply a moving upward. To climb is to make one's way upward, often with effort: to climb a mountain. Ascend, in its literal meaning (“to go up”), is general, but it now usually suggests a gradual or stately movement, with or without effort, often to a considerable degree of altitude: to ascend the heights; to ascend the Himalayas. Mount may be interchangeable with ascend, but also suggests climbing on top of or astride of: to mount a platform, a horse. Scale, a more literary word, implies difficult or hazardous climbing up or over something: to scale a summit.

OTHER WORDS FROM climb

climb·a·ble, adjectivehalf-climbing, adjectivenon·climb·a·ble, adjectivenon·climb·ing, adjective

re·climb, verb (used with object), re·climbed, re·climb·ing.un·climb·a·ble, adjectiveun·climbed, adjectiveun·climb·ing, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH climb

climb , clime

Words nearby climb

climatic zone, climatize, climatology, climax, climax community, climb, climb-down, climber, climb indicator, climbing fern, climbingfish

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use climb in a sentence

The second was how much fun the game was to watch, measured by the overall win probability swings — the steeper the dips and climbs, the better.
That really was one of the least enjoyable Super Bowls of all time|Neil Greenberg|February 9, 2021|Washington Post
This path heads to the top of the 520-foot-high dome, which overlooks Sand Beach and also features a near vertical climb with narrow ledges and rungs embedded in the rock face.
The Ultimate Acadia National Park Travel Guide|Virginia M. Wright|February 8, 2021|Outside Online
During the slow climb up the mountain, Jim and I chatted about our summers and the winter ahead.
After the Crash, They Said I Was Fine. I Wasn't.|Erin Tierney|February 4, 2021|Outside Online
The stock’s IPO debuted at $27 a share, then once the pandemic hit, started a climb that looks like a ride up Mount Ventoux, today trading at almost $150 a share.
Is Peloton overvalued?|Alan Murray|February 4, 2021|Fortune

However, Vice still faces an uphill climb to increase its revenue because its growing TV and movie business accounts for less than half of its total revenue.
Media Briefing: The media industry’s top trends at the moment|Tim Peterson|January 28, 2021|Digiday
The pilot asked air-traffic control for permission to climb from 32,000 to 38,000 feet to avoid the bad weather.
Wreckage, Bodies of AirAsia Crash Found|Lennox Samuels|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Make a batch of these rum balls, climb into a onesie, and let your favorite movie do the rest.
Carla Hall’s Christmas Day Treat: Rum Balls|Carla Hall|December 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Republicans have the highest hill to climb but greatest opportunity.
Is This the Beginning of the End for Blacks and Dems?|Keli Goff|November 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It took you quite a while to climb the Hollywood mountain, so to speak.
David Oyelowo on Playing Martin Luther King Jr., Ebola Fears, and Race in Hollywood|Marlow Stern|October 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Until the epidemic is brought under control, the CDC predicts the numbers will continue to climb at that rate.
Why Isn't Silicon Valley Doing More to Fight Ebola?|Abby Haglage|October 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Some of the alarm returned, however, when the creature attempted to climb up by his own ladder.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
I made two attempts to climb up, but both times slipped back.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
Analysis and practice in preparation are the steps over which we must climb to the platform of power.
Expressive Voice Culture|Jessie Eldridge Southwick
It was held to be certain death to climb to its summit, and foolhardy in the extreme to go far up its sides.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson
Climb up the hill to the old fort and look at the little wriggling gold snakes, and watch the lizards sun themselves.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin

British Dictionary definitions for climb

climb

/ (klaɪm) /

verb (mainly intr)

(also tr often foll by up) to go up or ascend (stairs, a mountain, etc)

(often foll by along) to progress with difficultyto climb along a ledge

to rise to a higher point or intensitythe temperature climbed

to incline or slope upwardsthe road began to climb

to ascend in social position

(of plants) to grow upwards by twining, using tendrils or suckers, etc

informal (foll by into) to put (on) or get (into)

to be a climber or mountaineer

noun

the act or an instance of climbing

a place or thing to be climbed, esp a route in mountaineering

Other words from climb

Related adjective: scansorial

Derived forms of climb

climbable, adjective

Word Origin for climb

Old English climban; related to Old Norse klembra to squeeze, Old High German climban to clamber

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

climb

OPPOSITES FOR climb

Origin of climb

synonym study for climb

OTHER WORDS FROM climb

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH climb

Words nearby climb

Words related to climb

How to use climb in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for climb

Other words from climb

Derived forms of climb

Word Origin for climb