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glacier

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The definition of a glacier is a huge mass of ice and snow that forms where snow gathers faster than it melts and flows along with water over an area of land.

(noun)

An example of a glacier is the Perito Moreno in Patagonia.

See glacier in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

a large mass of ice and snow that forms in areas where the rate of snowfall constantly exceeds the rate at which the snow melts: it moves slowly outward from the center of accumulation or down a mountain until it melts or breaks away

Origin: Fr (orig., Savoy dial. > also Ger gletscher) < VL *glaciarium < glacia, for L glacies, ice: see glacial

See glacier in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun

A huge mass of ice slowly flowing over a land mass, formed from compacted snow in an area where snow accumulation exceeds melting and sublimation.

Origin:

Origin: French

Origin: , from Old French, cold place

Origin: , from glace, ice

Origin: , from Vulgar Latin *glacia

Origin: , from Latin glaciēs; see gel- in Indo-European roots

Related Forms: