ice jam
Americannoun
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an obstruction of broken river ice in a narrow part of a channel.
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a mass of lake or sea ice broken and piled up against the shore by wind pressure.
Etymology
Origin of ice jam
First recorded in 1840–50
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.
Temperatures are expected to rise above freezing this weekend, which could help break up the ice jam.
From Washington Times • Jan. 29, 2021
In Newaygo County, Mich., where a 21-mile ice jam on the Muskegon River had flooded yards and closed a bridge, the warm-up was welcome.
From New York Times • Feb. 1, 2019
The Allegheny River ice jam begins at the Springdale/Plum area and extends upriver past the Tarentum Bridge.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 19, 2018
Watch drone footage of the Susquehanna River ice jam:
From Washington Post • Jan. 17, 2018
Just beyond this, a higher and stronger palisade protected the riverbank from the winter ice jam.
From On the Edge of the Arctic or, An Aeroplane in Snowland by Sayler, H. L. (Harry Lincoln)
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.
