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glacial
6 dictionary results for: Glacial
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
gla·cial       [gley-shuhl] Pronunciation Key
–adjective
1.of or pertaining to glaciers or ice sheets.
2.resulting from or associated with the action of ice or glaciers: glacial terrain.
3.characterized by the presence of ice in extensive masses or glaciers.
4.bitterly cold; icy: a glacial winter wind.
5.happening or moving extremely slowly: The work proceeded at a glacial pace.
6.icily unsympathetic or immovable: a glacial stare; glacial indifference.
7.Chemistry. of, pertaining to, or tending to develop into icelike crystals: glacial phosphoric acid.
[Origin: 1650–60; < L glaciālis icy, equiv. to glaci(és) ice + -ālis -al1]

—Related forms
gla·cial·ly, adverb

—Synonyms 4. chill, freezing, frigid, wintry. 6. forbidding, unfriendly, hostile.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
gla·cial       (glā'shəl)  Pronunciation Key 
adj.  
    1. Of, relating to, or derived from a glacier.
    2. Suggesting the extreme slowness of a glacier: Work proceeded at a glacial pace.
    3. often Glacial Characterized or dominated by the existence of glaciers. Used of a geologic epoch.
    4. Pleistocene. See Table at geologic time.
    5. Lacking warmth and friendliness: a glacial stare.
    6. Coldly detached: a glacial composure.
    1. often Glacial Characterized or dominated by the existence of glaciers. Used of a geologic epoch.
    2. Pleistocene. See Table at geologic time.
    3. Lacking warmth and friendliness: a glacial stare.
    4. Coldly detached: a glacial composure.
  3. Extremely cold; icy: glacial waters. See Synonyms at cold.
  4. Having the appearance of ice.
    1. Lacking warmth and friendliness: a glacial stare.
    2. Coldly detached: a glacial composure.


[French from Old French, icy, from Latin glaciālis, from glaciēs, ice; see gel- in Indo-European roots.]

gla'cial·ly adv.
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
glacial 
1656, from Fr. glacial, from L. glacialis "icy, frozen, full of ice," from glacies "ice," from PIE base *gel- "cold" (cf. L. gelu "frost"). Geological sense apparently coined by Professor E. Forbes, 1846.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
glacial

adjective
1. relating to or derived from a glacier; "glacial deposit" 
2. devoid of warmth and cordiality; expressive of unfriendliness or disdain; "a frigid greeting"; "got a frosty reception"; "a frozen look on their faces"; "a glacial handshake"; "icy stare"; "wintry smile" [syn: frigid] 
3. extremely cold; "an arctic climate"; "a frigid day"; "gelid waters of the North Atlantic"; "glacial winds"; "icy hands"; "polar weather" [syn: arctic] 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
glacial       (glā'shəl)  Pronunciation Key 
  1. Relating to or derived from a glacier.
  2. Characterized or dominated by the existence of glaciers, as the Pleistocene Epoch.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Glacial

Gla"cial\, a. [L. glacialis, from glacies ice: cf. F. glacial.]

1. Pertaining to ice or to its action; consisting of ice; frozen; icy; esp., pertaining to glaciers; as, glacial phenomena. --Lyell.

2. (Chem.) Resembling ice; having the appearance and consistency of ice; -- said of certain solid compounds; as, glacial phosphoric or acetic acids.

Glacial acid (Chem.), an acid of such strength or purity as to crystallize at an ordinary temperature, in an icelike form; as acetic or carbolic acid.

Glacial drift (Geol.), earth and rocks which have been transported by moving ice, land ice, or icebergs; bowlder drift.

Glacial epoch or period (Geol.), a period during which the climate of the modern temperate regions was polar, and ice covered large portions of the northern hemisphere to the mountain tops.

Glacial theory or hypothesis. (Geol.) See Glacier theory, under Glacier.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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