ice age

noun

1
: a time of widespread glaciation
2
capitalized I&A : the Pleistocene glacial epoch

Examples of ice age in a Sentence

changes that occurred during the last ice age
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The study also pinpointed a bacterium that plagued these colossal ice age creatures. Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 2 Sep. 2025 After the last ice age, huge ice sheets melted and global sea levels rose, submerging Stone Age settlements and forcing the hunter-gatherer human population inland. Jason Ma, Fortune, 26 Aug. 2025 Climate change was an existential threat because the next ice age was around the corner, and air, water and land pollution was destroying the earth. Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025 If your life was really, really long — if your life was 100,000 years — then that’s actually long enough to live through an ice age. Laura Poppick, Quanta Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for ice age

Word History

First Known Use

1855, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of ice age was in 1855

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Cite this Entry

“Ice age.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ice%20age. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

ice age

noun
1
: a time of widespread glaciation
2
capitalized I&A : the most recent such period in the earth's past

More from Merriam-Webster on ice age

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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