antarctic
/ænˈtɑɹ(k)tɪk/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.56 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Alternative spelling of Antarctic.
adj
Of, from, or pertaining to Antarctica and the south polar regions.
name
A continental region, one of the major ecozones of the world, covering the south polar regions, especially those south of the Antarctic Convergence; or, in accordance with the Antarctic Treaty System, the 60th parallel south.
Example Sentences
- "We are likely to consider Antarctic English as an occupational variety of general English rather than a new regional variety, mainly because men go to work in the Antarctic for a period, intending to return. They are not settlers."
- "Scientists have known for years that the Thwaites glacier is the soft underbelly of the Antarctic ice sheet, and first found that it was unstable decades ago."
- "Meronyms: Antarctica, Antarctic Ocean, Southern Ocean (south-of-60° sense)"
Etymology
From Middle English antartik, antartyk, from Middle French antartique, from Latin antarcticus, from Ancient Greek ἀνταρκτικός (antarktikós), from ἀντί (antí, “opposite”) + ἀρκτικός (arktikós, “Arctic”) + -ικός (-ikós, “-ic”). By surface analysis, anti- + Arctic.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: antartik, antartique, antarcticus, ἀνταρκτικός
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ænˈtɑɹ(k)tɪk/
- British English: /ænˈtɑː(k)tɪk/
Usage
Inflected Forms
more antarctic (comparative)
most antarctic (superlative)