glacier

American  

[gley-sher] / ˈgleɪ ʃər /

noun

glaciers plural

1. 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.

---

glacier British  

/ ˈɡlæsɪə, ˈɡleɪs- /

noun

1. 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 )

---

glacier Scientific  

/ glā′shər /

1. 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.

---

glacier Cultural  

1. 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.

---

Discover More

A significant percentage of the water of the Earth is locked up in glaciers.

Glaciers exist in high mountains throughout the temperate zones and cover most of Antarctica. Glaciers recede during warm periods and can expand during cold periods, creating ice ages.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• glaciered
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• glaciers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of glacier

1735–45; < dialectal French, derivative of Old French glace ice < Late Latin glacia (for Latin glaciēs )

Explanation

A glacier is a very large ice mass, sometimes miles and miles long. Glaciers might not seem all that exciting at first, but people are paying close attention to them because their melting is an indication of climate change. Most glaciers on Earth are found around the North and South poles, but every continent except for Australia has glaciers somewhere in its high mountain ranges. People often want to go see glaciers because they're beautiful, and some you can actually hike across. Luckily, if you get thirsty glaciers are the planet’s largest reservoir of freshwater. You’ll just have to find some way of melting them . . .

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

glacier glaciers

Meanwhile, a team of climbers stumbled upon a preserved boot, which is believed to have belonged to Irvine, after it was revealed by melting ice on a glacier in 2024.

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

The snow and ice accumulated last winter by Switzerland's glaciers is expected to have all melted away by Monday, marking the alarming second-earliest arrival on record of the tipping point known as glacier loss day.

From Barron's ● Jun. 27, 2026

Little relief is expected in much of Europe over the weekend, and a glacier research team in Switzerland has warned that the heatwave is being felt in the mountains too.

From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026

The fairways may be wide and forgiving, but hitting at the greens can feel like trying to land the ball on a glacier.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026

A flower was always in his grasp, as was a glacier, or a glimpse of the southern cross.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

"These landscapes are changing fast, and arctic and alpine glaciers might be some of the first habitats lost completely to climate change," she said.

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026

Much of the water that flows into the Rhine and the Rhone, two of Europe's major rivers, comes from the Alpine glaciers.

From Barron's ● Jun. 27, 2026

This century, the tipping point, on average, has been reached in mid-August -- itself already bad news for the nation's glaciers, which are shrinking at a staggering rate.

From Barron's ● Jun. 27, 2026

"Now that those lower glaciers have completely vanished into a desert of dry rock, there is nothing left at the top to melt," he says.

From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026

New Guinea is covered with young fertile soil, as a consequence of volcanic activity, glaciers repeatedly advancing and retreating and scouring the highlands, and mountain streams carrying huge quantities of silt to the lowlands.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• ice floe
• iceberg