Showing results for "mountaineering"

• present participle of mountaineer.

mountaineering

American  

[moun-tn-eer-ing] / ˌmaʊn tnˈɪər ɪŋ /

noun

1. the sport of climbing mountains.

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Etymology

Origin of mountaineering

First recorded in 1795–1805; mountaineer + -ing ¹

Explanation

Mountaineering is another word for the sport of mountain climbing. If high altitudes and low temperatures are your thing, you should take up mountaineering. Climbing in snowy and ice-covered places requires special equipment and extreme care, watching out for dangers like falling ice and rocks, storms, and avalanches. In some parts of the world, mountaineering is called "alpinism." Originally, the noun mountaineer was a seventeenth century word for "mountain dweller." Two hundred years later, it came to mean "mountain climber."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mountaineering

In Nepal, she traveled to Everest Base Camp to write a dispatch for the Christian Science Monitor on the country's attempts to more closely regulate the mountaineering industry.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026

"This is another milestone in Nepal's mountaineering history," Himal Gautam, spokesperson for Nepal's Tourism Department, told AFP.

From Barron's ● May 17, 2026

Members of the co-op mainly bought mountaineering equipment imported from Europe.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026

He was promptly drafted into the Army, but his mountaineering experience led him to be assigned to the Mountain and Cold Weather Training Command in Colorado instead of combat duty in Korea.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 8, 2026

I was surprised and concerned to see Beck, Stuart, and Lou unpacking brand-new mountaineering boots that, by their own admission, had scarcely been worn.

From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer

Related Words

• hiking