Little Ice Age
noun
: an episode of glacial expansion whose maximum extension occurred in the 17th and 18th centuries
Examples of Little Ice Age in a Sentence
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The moa’s passing and the arrival of the Little Ice Age pushed those proto-Maoris to the more temperate North Island, leading to what evolved into the Maori culture of modern times.
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David Bloom, Forbes.com, 8 July 2025
The first Independence Day occurred during the period known as the Little Ice Age, which ran from 1300 to 1850 and saw temperatures in North America falling 1°C to 2°C (1.8° F to 3.6°F) below thousand-year averages.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 3 July 2025
At the time, the area was undergoing a colder climatic period called the Little Ice Age.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 June 2025
Pollen from hardwood tropical trees increased, indicating vegetation rebounded even as rainfall declined during the Little Ice Age between the 14th and mid-19th centuries.
—Francisca Oboh Ikuenobe, The Conversation, 20 May 2025
According to a study in Geology, a collection of rocks on Iceland’s coast reveals the severity of the Late Antique Little Ice Age — a period of climate change that may have contributed to the Roman Empire’s collapse.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 17 Apr. 2025
In the mid-eighteenth century, during a period of cooling known as the Little Ice Age, Benjamin Franklin began designing a heating device that would be more efficient than the traditional fireplace.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2025
The Planet The Little Ice Age, which lasted from the early 1300s to the mid 1800s wasn’t caused by a single event, but by the compounding effects of a series of environmental shifts, volcanic eruptions and the unintended consequences of human absence.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
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David Bloom, Forbes.com, 8 July 2025
The first Independence Day occurred during the period known as the Little Ice Age, which ran from 1300 to 1850 and saw temperatures in North America falling 1°C to 2°C (1.8° F to 3.6°F) below thousand-year averages.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 3 July 2025
At the time, the area was undergoing a colder climatic period called the Little Ice Age.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 June 2025
Pollen from hardwood tropical trees increased, indicating vegetation rebounded even as rainfall declined during the Little Ice Age between the 14th and mid-19th centuries.
—Francisca Oboh Ikuenobe, The Conversation, 20 May 2025
According to a study in Geology, a collection of rocks on Iceland’s coast reveals the severity of the Late Antique Little Ice Age — a period of climate change that may have contributed to the Roman Empire’s collapse.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 17 Apr. 2025
In the mid-eighteenth century, during a period of cooling known as the Little Ice Age, Benjamin Franklin began designing a heating device that would be more efficient than the traditional fireplace.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2025
The Planet The Little Ice Age, which lasted from the early 1300s to the mid 1800s wasn’t caused by a single event, but by the compounding effects of a series of environmental shifts, volcanic eruptions and the unintended consequences of human absence.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Little Ice Age.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Little%20Ice%20Age. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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