glacial Hear it!

glacial Definition

gla·cial (glās̸həl; chiefly Brit, -sē əl)

adjective

  1. of or like ice or glaciers
  2. of or produced by a glacier or a glacial epoch or period
  3. freezing; frigid glacial weather
  4. cold and unfriendly a glacial stare
  5. as slow as the movement of a glacier glacial progress
  6. Chem. having an icelike, crystalline appearance

Etymology: L glacialis, icy, frozen < glacies, ice < IE *glag-, partial redupl. of base *gel-, to freeze > cold

glacial Related Forms

gla·cially adverb

glacial Synonyms

glacial

modif.

  1. Cold

    icy, frozen, polar; see cold 1.

  2. Indifferent

    cool, unfriendly, antagonistic; see cold 2, indifferent 1.

glacial Usage Examples

Preposition: till

deposit: The tunnel was excavated through a potentially unstable embankment of glacial till deposits with granite boulders utilizing hand excavation from within a Greathead shield.

Adjective modifier

  • Icelandic: Icelandic Glacial will be launching in the UK in August 2005 and will be distributed through premium retail outlets, hotels and restaurants.
  • last: The Last Glacial reached its maximum at about 22,000 yr BP.

Modifies a noun

  • moraine: Sea Rush near the pile of glacial moraine which guarded the second area of marsh behind.
  • geomorphology: A research paper on the evolution of the glacial geomorphology has been published in Quaternary Science Reviews.
  • meltwater: However, in the Himalaya upwards of 80 % of flow in the major longitudinal rivers is glacial meltwater.
  • landform: We walked up to Easedale Tarn to look at glacial landforms left from the last ice age.
  • erosion: Although there is no direct evidence of glacial erosion, the area would have been covered during the Ice Age.
  • drift: In some areas, notably much of Ireland, glacial drift has covered up the useful walling stone.

Modifying Another Word

late: The Late Glacial in Europe: pathways to complexity?

Used with adjective complement

include: These include glacial, fluvial and a mixed group of periglacial deposits known as " Head "

Browse dictionary entries near glacial

  1. glacé
  2. glabrous
  3. glabrate
  4. glabella
  5. glögg
  6. Gk
  7. gizzard
  8. gizmo
  9. giving up
  10. giving
  1. glacial epoch
  2. glacialist
  3. glaciate
  4. glacier
  5. glaciology
  6. glacis
  7. glad
  8. glad hand
  9. glad rags
  10. gladden