climb

verb · noun

Simple meaning

To move by gripping with the hands and using the feet.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

klym

US device voice

IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈklaɪm

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

intransitive
To ascend; rise; to go up.
transitive
To move (especially up and down something) by gripping with the hands and using the feet.
transitive
To mount; to move upwards on.
To move to a higher position on the social ladder.
To move to a higher position on a chart, table, society, etc.
intransitive
To jump high.

noun

The act of climbing something
“It was a difficult climb to the top.”
An effort of moving upward.
The act of getting to somewhere more elevated.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty: B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency: Moderately Common
Typical Use: Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: To move (especially up and down something) by gripping with the hands and using the feet.

Used this way, climb is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone: Neutral
Formality: Neutral
Intensity: Not strongly marked
How common: Moderately common
Connotation: No strong connotation
Usage feel: Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use climb

“Did you ever climb up the hill behind your house?”verb
“The path climbed all the way to the top of the hill.”verb
“This young man knows how to climb the social ladder.”verb

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

climb backclimb throughclimb aboard

Tap the highlighted word to open its own entry.

Similar Words, What’s the Difference?

Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.

mount
To cause (something) to rise or ascend.
rise
To go up; to ascend; to climb.
climb up
To gradually ascend something.
go up
To rise or increase in price, cost, or value.
raise
To cause to rise; to lift or elevate.

Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

climbingnounInflected form
An event that involves rising to a higher point (as in altitude or temperature or intensity etc.).
climbernounInflected form
A vine or climbing plant that readily grows up a support or over other plants.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

climb onverbCompound term
Get up on the back of.
climb upverbCompound term
Go upward with gradual or continuous progress.
climbing bird's nest fernnounCompound term
Tropical Africa to Australasia and Polynesia.
climbing bittersweetnounCompound term
Twining shrub of North America having yellow capsules enclosing scarlet seeds.
climbing bonesetnounCompound term
Herb of tropical America having vanilla-scented flowers.
climbing corydalisnounCompound term
Annual vine with decompound leaves and racemes of yellow and pink flowers.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: to ascend

rise

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.