ice sheet

American  

noun

1. a broad, thick sheet of ice covering an extensive area for a long period of time.

2. a glacier covering a large fraction of a continent.

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ice sheet British  

noun

1. a thick layer of ice covering a large area of land for a long time, esp those in Antarctica and Greenland

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Etymology

Origin of ice sheet

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Instead, they highlight how complex and dynamic the ice sheet really is.

From Science Daily • Mar. 14, 2026

Eight men sliding 16 stones down an ice sheet to the soundtrack of clunking granite, furious sweeping and hollered commands of "hard" and "curl".

From BBC • Feb. 21, 2026

During the Cold War, the U.S. considered stationing nuclear missiles under the ice sheet in Greenland — and never told Greenlanders or Denmark about the secret project.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 18, 2026

Surveying and mining under such a thick ice sheet is impossible, according to experts, leaving large areas of the territory unexplored.

From Barron's • Feb. 14, 2026

Nathan got to his hands and knees and crawled to the edge of the ice sheet.

From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young