pack ice

noun

: sea ice formed into a mass by the crushing together of pans, floes, and brash

Examples of pack ice in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Preferably, strong east winds pack ice into the west end. David Zeug, Outdoor Life, 22 Jan. 2023 Today the Arctic is warming at a rate twice that of the rest of the world; summer pack ice may be gone by 2040 with trans-Arctic commercial shipping and industrial development soon to begin, and Arctic peoples are now represented at the United Nations. Smithsonian Magazine, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Apr. 2020 Venus may still be active based on 'pack ice' finding Volcanoes act like windows into a planet’s interior, allowing scientists to understand more about what factors influence its ability to be a habitable world. Ashley Strickland, CNN, 15 Mar. 2023 The missile-firing submarines were designed to operate in the Arctic under pack ice. Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 9 May 2022 And in 2021, a reanalysis of Magellan data indicated large blocks of crust had been jostled around like pack ice—a sign of rock stirring below the surface. Bypaul Voosen, science.org, 15 Mar. 2023 That summer, the island remained surrounded by thick pack ice. Ailsa Ross, Longreads, 4 Apr. 2023 In another, the British Terra Nova ship is surrounded by pack ice. Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Feb. 2023 In the winter of 1854-55, the Candace was caught in Arctic pack ice and badly damaged. Carl Nolte, San Francisco Chronicle, 11 Mar. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pack ice.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1842, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of pack ice was in 1842

Dictionary Entries Near pack ice

Cite this Entry

“Pack ice.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pack%20ice. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

pack ice

noun
: sea ice formed into a mass by the crushing together of chunks and sheets of ice

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