glacier
an extended mass of ice formed from snow falling and accumulating over the years and moving very slowly, either descending from high mountains, as in valley glaciers, or moving outward from centers of accumulation, as in continental glaciers.
Origin of glacier
1Other words from glacier
- glaciered, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use glacier in a sentence
The glaciers are melting because snowfall is decreasing and temperatures are rising—bad news for wolverines.
Who Will Save the Wolverine? Not the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | Doug Peacock | July 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe route gives spectacular views of Copper River, as well as the surrounding mountains, glaciers, and wild flowers.
Some days, she felt as though glaciers were buckling around her and a crevasse yawned beneath her.
Breaking Mount Everest’s Glass Ceiling | Amanda Padoan, Peter Zuckerman | March 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIn May 1596, his expedition ran aground on the northern edge of Nova Zembla, and his ship was destroyed by moving glaciers.
Pale Fire and the Cold War: Redefining Vladimir Nabokov’s Masterpiece | Michael Weiss | October 13, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTIndia and Pakistan will face a crisis as the glaciers that feed the Indus River shrink and disappear.
At this stage it begins to break off masses of ice from the glaciers over which it may flow, or even to move large stones.
Outlines of the Earth's History | Nathaniel Southgate ShalerWe will now turn our attention to some important features of a detailed sort which glaciers exhibit.
Outlines of the Earth's History | Nathaniel Southgate ShalerWhat will it be like a few days hence, when I shall scramble through the passes and over glaciers by myself!
The Life & Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky | Modeste TchaikovskyAll the glaciers are now in retreat, with old tree-covered moraines, hundreds or thousands of feet lower down the valley.
There are two of these glaciers in the valleys below the Schreckhorn and the Wetterhorn, near the long village of Grindelwald.
Rudy and Babette | Hans Christian Andersen
British Dictionary definitions for glacier
/ (ˈɡlæsɪə, ˈɡleɪs-) /
a slowly moving mass of ice originating from an accumulation of snow. It can either spread out from a central mass (continental glacier) or descend from a high valley (alpine glacier)
Origin of glacier
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for glacier
[ glā′shər ]
A large mass of ice moving very slowly through a valley or spreading outward from a center. Glaciers form over many years from packed snow in areas where snow accumulates faster than it melts. A glacier is always moving, but when its forward edge melts faster than the ice behind it advances, the glacier as a whole shrinks backward.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for glacier
A large mass of ice formed over many years that does not melt during the summer. Glaciers move slowly over an area of land such as a mountain valley.
Notes for glacier
Notes for glacier
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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