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.
Nepali climber Kami Rita Sherpa, who scaled Everest for a record 32nd time earlier this month, returned to the capital Kathmandu on Friday, where he expressed concern about the experience of some climbers.
From Barron's • May 22, 2026
A US and a Czech climber died on Mount Makalu earlier this month.
From Barron's • May 22, 2026
Whittaker, who died April 7 at the age of 97, became the most celebrated American mountain climber of his era.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026
An ascent by American climber Alex Honnald up a Taiwan skyscraper earlier this year was also streamed live on Netflix, with a reported 6.2 million people tuning in.
From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026
But technical expertise counted for next to nothing on Everest, and I’d spent less time at high altitude than virtually every other climber present.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
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.
