glacier

noun

gla·​cier ˈglā-shər 

also

-zhər 

especially British ˈgla-sē-ə

or ˈglā-sē-ə

: a large body of ice moving slowly down a slope or valley or spreading outward on a land surface

Examples of glacier in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Its a landscape of mountains, glaciers, fjords, tundra and sea ice. — Sarah Kingdom, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026

Late last month, a hiker discovered human remains that turned up following the melting of the Trift glacier south of the city of Lucerne, prompting a recovery operation, the regional government said Wednesday. — Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026

That same year the body of a 31-year-old Pakistani man who had been missing for 28 years was found near the edge of a melting glacier in Pakistan, CBS News reported at the time. — James Powel, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2026

The year before that, the remains of a German climber who went missing in 1986 were recovered on a glacier in the Swiss Alps. — CBS News, 19 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

French, from Middle French dialect (Franco-Provençal), from glace ice, from Latin glacies; akin to Latin gelu frost — more at cold

First Known Use

1744, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

glacier

noun

gla·​cier ˈglā-shər 

: a large body of ice moving slowly down a slope or valley or spreading outward on a land surface