Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

glass cliff

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.03 in modern English

Syllables: glass -cliff
IPA

19

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

2

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A phenomenon where women in leadership roles are likelier than men to achieve such roles during periods of crisis or downturn, when the risk of failure is highest.

Example Sentences

"Since her appointment, she [Linda Yaccarino] has been linked with the “glass cliff” theory, put forward in 2005 by researchers at the University of Exeter. The theory posits that women are more likely to be promoted or brought into top jobs at times of a crisis and thus set up for failure."

Etymology

Proposed in 2005, extending the glass ceiling metaphor.

Inflected Forms

glass cliffs (plural)

Phrases

glass ceiling

Frequently Paired Words

glass ceiling

Questions

What does glass cliff mean?: A phenomenon where women in leadership roles are likelier than men to achieve such roles during periods of crisis or downturn, when the risk of failure is highest.
Where does glass cliff come from?: Proposed in 2005, extending the glass ceiling metaphor.

How to pronounce glass cliff

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “glass cliff”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
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