icebreaker
Americannoun
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Also called: iceboat. a vessel with a reinforced bow for breaking up the ice in bodies of water to keep channels open for navigation
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any tool or device for breaking ice into smaller pieces
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something intended to relieve mutual shyness at a gathering of strangers
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of icebreaker
Explanation
An icebreaker can be an exercise or game that's meant to introduce people to each other in a fun, relaxed way. You know the first day of school, when you are asked to share your favorite stuffed animal — that's an icebreaker. If you invite party guests who've never met, you might play a game or tell some jokes as an icebreaker. A more formal icebreaker could involve games or songs that help people remember each other's names, for example. In this metaphor, the "ice" is the tension caused by being in an unfamiliar situation or meeting new people. The original icebreaker was literally that: a ship designed to break through ice in frozen channels at sea.
Vocabulary lists containing icebreaker
The Poet X
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Save Me a Seat
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"Dogs at Work"
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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.
See Examples For:
It is this type of advanced icebreaker that would make navigating through the frozen Hudson Bay possible, Crawford said.
From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2026
In 2022, the researchers traveled aboard the now-decommissioned U.S. icebreaker, the Nathaniel B. Palmer, to the Dotson Ice Shelf in the Amundsen Sea of West Antarctica.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 28, 2026
Lin leaves stacks of “conversation cards” featuring icebreaker questions on the tables at Coffee Confessionals, to help prompt connection between strangers or for those on first dates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2026
At the beginning of the semester, Satzewich asks students to write a brief icebreaker post as a way to introduce themselves to him and others in their discussion groups.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 8, 2026
That would be the icebreaker I needed to talk to Tina and make her aware that I was a cool guy into alternative music who went on weekend concert trips with college students.
From "Liar, Liar" by Gary Paulsen
Most of Russia’s fleet of nuclear submarines and icebreakers is located on the Arctic Kola Peninsula.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026
Demand for other types of sea platforms is also growing, including icebreakers to access the Arctic region, submarines, underwater drones and cruise ships, Folgiero added.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026
"It is not possible to sail through the Arctic Sea without icebreakers and many big nations have interests in the Arctic right now," Viitanen said.
From Barron's ● Feb. 3, 2026
In October, Trump and Helsinki announced that the United States coast guard will procure 11 icebreakers.
From Barron's ● Feb. 3, 2026
In my mind I ran through a couple of icebreakers.
From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds
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.
