ice cap

noun

Updated on: 10 Apr 2018

Definition of ice cap

1 : an ice bag shaped to the head

2 : a cover of perennial ice and snow; specifically : a glacier forming on an extensive area of relatively level land and flowing outward from its center

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Recent Examples of ice cap from the Web

That warmer average temperature has also led, in complete contrast to what the President of the United States said here, to melting ice caps.

— jack holmes, Esquire, "Trump's Latest Climate Change Interview Was Absurd," 29 Jan. 2018
Over a four-year span, Greenland’s ice cap shed 1 trillion tons of ice.

— rob nixon, Smithsonian, "Climate Change Can Also Transform Language," 23 Mar. 2018
Throughout the winter months, the ice cap doubles in size from nearly 3 million square miles to nearly 6 million.

— brian resnick, Vox, "5 reasons the Arctic’s extremely warm winter should alarm you," 16 Mar. 2018
There are other local advantages to the ice cap — which makes up almost 80% of Greenland — melting.

— lidia jean kott, USA TODAY, "Fishermen in Greenland are doing better than ever. That might be thanks to climate change.," 31 Jan. 2018
There is speculation that atmospheric pollution may have already contributed to global warming—with damaging consequences for the south polar ice cap.

— Popular Mechanics, "We've Been Talking About Climate Change for a Hundred Years," 4 Jan. 2018
This video from the the Aotearoa New Zealand Ross Ice Shelf program is part of a study that's trying to figure out what's happening in Earth's receding ice caps by getting up close and personal with them.

— sophie weiner, Popular Mechanics, "Watch This Mesmerizing Descent Down a 300-Meter Antarctic Borehole," 4 Feb. 2018
The bayshore is faced with sea rise due to melting glaciers and ice caps, while development and groundwater removal make land sink.

— frank kummer, Philly.com, "Another N.J. hamlet on the Delaware Bayshore is razed, a victim of sea rise," 12 Dec. 2017
December 12, 2017 —For decades, the Arctic has been viewed as a problem, a place of tension between nations with competing claims to its potential wealth, especially as the ice cap recedes.

— The Christian Science Monitor, "An Arctic pact shows what’s possible," 12 Dec. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ice cap.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of ice cap

1816

ICE CAP Defined for English Language Learners

ice cap

noun

Definition of ice cap for English Language Learners

: a very large and thick sheet of ice that covers the North Pole, the South Pole, or another region

ICE CAP Defined for Kids

ice cap

noun

Definition of ice cap for Students

: a large more or less level glacier flowing outward in all directions from its center

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See words that rhyme with ice cap Spanish Central: Translation of ice cap Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about ice cap

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ice cap

Definition of ice cap

Recent Examples of ice cap from the Web

First Known Use of ice cap

ICE CAP Defined for English Language Learners

ice cap

Definition of ice cap for English Language Learners

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ice cap

Definition of ice cap for Students

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