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icebreaker

ice·break·er [ ˈīs-ˌbrā-kər]

icebreaker

noun

[ˈīs-ˌbrā-kər]

Definition of icebreaker

1 : a ship equipped (as with a reinforced bow) to make and maintain a channel through ice

2 : something that is done or said to get through the first difficulties in starting a conversation or discussion Roughly half of all Americans are invested in the market these days, and stock holdings have replaced politics, weather and sports as the go-to conversational icebreaker.— Adam Bryant … she also pays particular attention to icebreakers that relax guests and get them rubbing elbows, such as a cruise up the Colorado River, where guests nibble on hors d'oeuvres and sip Fall Creek wines.— Steve Heimoff — see also break the ice at break entry 1

Recent Examples on the Web

//About 100 researchers will set sail Friday from Tromso, Norway, aboard the German icebreaker Polarstern in an effort to understand how climate change is affecting the Arctic and regions beyond.
— San Diego Union-Tribune, "Scientists prepare for year-long expedition to Arctic center," 20 Sep. 2019
//In April, Russian President Vladimir Putin put forward an ambitious program to reaffirm his country's presence in the Arctic, including efforts to build ports and other infrastructure and expand its icebreaker fleet.
— David Rising And Seth Borenstein, chicagotribune.com, "Climate change turns Arctic into strategic, economic hotspot," 26 Aug. 2019
//In April, Russian President Vladimir Putin put forward an ambitious program to reaffirm his country’s presence in the Arctic, including efforts to build ports and other infrastructure and expand its icebreaker fleet.
— Washington Post, "Climate change turns Arctic into strategic, economic hotspot," 22 Aug. 2019
//The ship, Ural, is the third in the class of three Project 22220 icebreakers.
— Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Meet 'Ural,' Russia's New Nuclear-Powered Icebreaking Behemoth," 28 May 2019
//But in 2017, as seasonal ice receded amid rising global temperatures, a tanker cleared the route without an icebreaker for the first time ever.
— NBC News, "Russia's 'floating Chernobyl' nuclear plant begins voyage north," 23 Aug. 2019
//Los Angeles Times photographer Brian van der Brug gets soaked while shooting Coast Guard crew members training to fight fires aboard the Polar Star, the lone U.S. heavy icebreaker.
— Los Angeles Times, "Behind the story: Hitching a ride on a dilapidated Coast Guard icebreaker," 2 Aug. 2019
//Next month, an international expedition led by the German icebreaker Polarstern will pay homage to Nansen’s strategy in the biggest Arctic science expedition to date.
— Eli Kintisch, Science | AAAS, "Arctic researchers will lock this ship in ice for a year to study the changing polar region," 20 Aug. 2019
//It is equipped with two pressurized water reactors — a version of naval reactors used by Russia's atomic icebreakers, Dmitry Alekseyenko, the deputy head of floating nuclear power plant construction and operation, told NBC News.
— NBC News, "Russia's 'floating Chernobyl' nuclear plant begins voyage north," 23 Aug. 2019

First Known Use of icebreaker

1825, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Dictionary Entries near icebreaker

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icebreaker