ice sheet

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noun

a broad, thick sheet of ice covering an extensive area for a long period of time.

a glacier covering a large fraction of a continent.

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QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!

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“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

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Origin of ice sheet

First recorded in 1870–75

Words nearby ice sheet

ice road, ice run, icescape, ice-scoured, ice screw, ice sheet, ice shelf, ice show, ice skate, ice station, ice storm

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

How to use ice sheet in a sentence

Lalo said he reported the kidnapping to his ICE handlers, which was confirmed by a former federal agent familiar with the case.
An Informant, a Missing American, and Juarez’s House of Death: Inside the 12-Year Cold Case of David Castro|Bill Conroy|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But Huckabee (akin to Elizabeth Warren on the left) is like an ice cream sundae.
The Devil in Mike Huckabee|Dean Obeidallah|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Just who is crazy enough to go swimming when the pond across the street has a layer of ice across the top?
Diving Into 2015 With Polar Bear Plunge Extremists|James Joiner|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Crew members had to cut through the ice on the streets to get shots.
Speed Read: The Juiciest Bits From the History of ‘Purple Rain’|Jennie Yabroff|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Serve with the warm sauce and your choice of ice cream, whipped cream, or yogurt.
Make ‘The Chew’s’ Carla Hall’s Sticky Toffee Pudding|Carla Hall|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If you use it wisely, it may be Ulysses' hauberk; if you reject it, the shirt of Nessus were a cooler winding-sheet!
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
He leant against the wall of his refuge, notwithstanding this boast, and licked the ice to moisten his parched lips.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
The left heel followed like lightning, and the right paw also slipped, letting the bear again fall heavily on the ice below.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
A long stretch of smooth ice followed, over which he glided with ever-increasing speed.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
Profiting by this, Benjy quietly moved away round a colossal buttress of the berg, and took refuge in an ice-cave.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne

British Dictionary definitions for ice sheet

ice sheet

noun

a thick layer of ice covering a large area of land for a long time, esp those in Antarctica and Greenland

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

Scientific definitions for ice sheet

ice sheet

A large sheet of ice and snow that covers an entire region and spreads out under its own weight. Ice sheets have an area of more than 50,000 square km (19,500 square mi). Compare icecap.