glacier Hear it!

glacier definition

gla·cier (glā′s̸hər; chiefly Brit, -sē ər)

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

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

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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