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Glite Dictionary
permafrost

permafrost

14 7.7
A layer of soil or rock that stays frozen all year
  • noun
  • /ˈpɜrməˌfrɔst/
  • Specialized
: permafrost
  • A layer of permafrost under the surface keeps the ground frozen throughout the year in polar regions.
  • layer of permafrost
  • thawing permafrost
  • permafrost region

So it's not just the ice caps, the permafrost in the north as well.

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Examples

  • Rising sea levels, melting ice, deteriorating permafrost, and increasingly violent storms were rendering their village uninhabitable.

    Academic text (2006)

  • With the polar ice caps and the permafrost continuing to melt, there'll be more flooding in the coastal cities, more unstable foundations for roads, buildings... and for pipelines.

    The Second Arrival (1998)

  • So it's not just the ice caps, the permafrost in the north as well.

    Gregory B. Sadler - That Philosophy Guy

  • Everyone that deals with permafrost always has to talk about carbon.

  • In other words, the complex is standing on a permafrost plug.

    Academic text (2010)

  • Although I had never come across permafrost before on an excavation, it is easy to recognize.

    Academic text (2010)

  • In the far north, even below the permafrost zone, trees root very shallowly but broadly.

    Blog text (5)

  • As hard as the permafrost is, the lake's water has a warming effect, meaning that the permafrost is periodically thawing.

    Academic text (2010)

  • Once it has melted, permafrost may release large amounts of mercury hidden in frozen soils and plants.

    Academic text (2012)

  • The bodies of their chieftains, found frozen in the Siberian permafrost, display a dazzling array of designs, from rearing stallions to fantastic beasts.

Surface Forms

permafrost singular
permafrosts plural

Morphology

permafrost = permanent + frost (transparent) = perma + frost

Meaning is directly derived from 'permanent' (perma-) + 'frost' as permanently frozen ground, which a B1 learner who knows the base words can infer.

Etymology

The word permafrost is made from perma-, from 'permanent' meaning 'lasting', and frost, meaning 'frozen'. It echoes the Russian idea of 'eternal frost' and describes ground that stays frozen all year.