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permafrost

 - 4 dictionary results

per⋅ma⋅frost

  [pur-muh-frawst, -frost]
Use permafrost in a Sentence
–noun
(in arctic or subarctic regions) perennially frozen subsoil.
Also called pergelisol.

Origin:
1943; perma(nent) + frost
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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per·ma·frost   (pûr'mə-frôst', -frŏst')   
n.  Permanently frozen subsoil, occurring throughout the Polar Regions and locally in perennially frigid areas.

[perma(nent) + frost.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

permafrost 
1943, coined in Eng. by S.W. Muller from perm(anent) frost.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Science Dictionary
permafrost   (pûr'mə-frôst')  Pronunciation Key 
A layer of soil or bedrock that has been continuously frozen for at least two years and as long as tens of thousands of years. Permafrost can reach depths of up to 1,524 m (4,999 ft). It is found throughout most of the polar regions and underlies about one fifth of the Earth's land surface.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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