glacier

American  

[glay-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.

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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 )

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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.

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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.

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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

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Etymology

Origin of glacier

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

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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, Doug has made a confession that haunts the men as they follow a pregnant bison onto an unstable glacier.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026

A lateral moraine, a ridge of material left along the side of a glacier, outlines the mouth.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

"This river can flood if the glacier collapses or if the glacial lake bursts out and we are living in constant fear."

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026

Tibet and Nepal were also recently devastated by massive floods and landslides less than two months ago, unleashed by a glacier collapse, which killed at least 1,400 people.

From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026

As night fell the fog flowed down off the glacier and spread out all across the lake, so that he could not see his way, nor where to set his skis.

From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin

“I just tried to vote anti-data center for every single candidate,” said Wendi Deschamps, a Peltola voter and environmental scientist in Girdwood, Alaska, a small town surrounded by seven glaciers about 45 minutes from Anchorage.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026

Scientists have been studying Vega Island's glaciers for decades, and satellite observations have played an important role in documenting their condition.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

This has sped up the melting of glaciers, icefields, snowpacks, and ground that's normally frozen all year.

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026

As Switzerland's glaciers continue to shrink irreversibly, the amount of meltwater they can provide will also decline, reducing a source of water that currently helps offset shortages during the warmer months.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 23, 2026

The first level that Hideo’s committee has created for our game looks like a world of glittering ice and towering glaciers.

From "Warcross" by Marie Lu

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Related Words

• ice floe
• iceberg

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