Definition of glacier
: a large body of ice moving slowly down a slope or valley or spreading outward on a land surface
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Recent Examples of glacier from the Web
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At high altitudes where most glaciers are found, temperatures are rising faster than in the valleys below, with signs pointing to even greater melting in the decades ahead.
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Yurts made of white felt are creeping steadily up the hillsides, like a glacier in reverse.
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According to Rignot, Larsen C holds back around 1 centimeter of global sea level rise in the form of glaciers feeding into the remaining ice shelf.
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Even in summer, Iceland offers snowmobile trips and hiking on glaciers, kayaking outings in majestic fjords and warming soaks in geothermal pools.
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Speed Art Museum, 2035 S. Third St., 1 p.m. Sunday, July 9. National Geographic photographer James Balog uses time-lapse cameras to capture a multi-year record of the world’s changing glaciers.
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Visits to a birch syrup maker, an oyster farm and the famous cooking school at Tutka Bay Lodge are interspersed with wilderness adventures including dog sledding on a glacier and wildlife watching.
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But similar landslides take place on Earth, often on glaciers.
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From both regular and glass-bottom cabins, sightseers look onto coastal rainforests, glaciers, blooming wildflowers and the occasional bear munching on berries.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'glacier.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of glacier
French, from Middle French dialect (Franco-Provençal), from glace ice, from Latin glacies; akin to Latin gelu frost — more at cold
Other Geology Terms
anthracite, boulder, cwm, erratic, igneous, intrusive, mesa, sedimentary, silt, swale
GLACIER Defined for English Language Learners
glacier
playDefinition of glacier for English Language Learners
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: a very large area of ice that moves slowly down a slope or valley or over a wide area of land
GLACIER Defined for Kids
glacier
playDefinition of glacier for Students
: a large body of ice moving slowly down a slope or over a wide area of land
Learn More about glacier
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See words that rhyme with glacier Spanish Central: Translation of glacier Nglish: Translation of glacier for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of glacier for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about glacier
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