climb.
To traverse a slope or contour, either upwards (ascending) or downwards (descending).
Meaning & usage
To traverse a slope or contour, either upwards (ascending) or downwards (descending).
(literally or figuratively): To ascend; rise; to go up.
(literally or figuratively): To ascend; rise; to go up. To ascend in a non-physical or figurative sense.
The hit song has climbed to the number one spot.
(literally or figuratively): To ascend; rise; to go up. To move to a higher position on a chart or hierarchy.
Prices climbed steeply.
To mount; to move upwards on.
climbing a tree
They climbed the mountain.
To scale; to get to the top of something.
To enter, mount or otherwise assume a position in or on a conveyance.
He climbed into the passenger-seat of the car.
We'll climb back on our bikes and continue the route.
To move (especially up and down something) by gripping with the hands and using the feet.
My legs were so stiff and my arms so sore that this morning I could barely climb out of bed.
Greasing involves climbing under the vehicle into an inspection pit.
To practise the sport of climbing.
To jump high.
(botany) Of plants, to grow upwards by clinging to something.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English climben, clymben, from Old English climban (“to climb”), from Proto-West Germanic *klimban, from Proto-Germanic *klimbaną (“to climb, go up by clinging”), believed to be a nasalised variant of Proto-Germanic *klibaną, *klibāną (“to stick, cleave”), from Proto-Indo-European *gley- (“to stick”). Cognate with West Frisian klimme (“to climb”), Dutch klimmen (“to climb”), German klimmen (“to climb”), Old Norse klembra (“to squeeze”), Icelandic klifra (“to climb”). Related to clamber. See also clay, glue.
An act of climbing.
The act of getting to somewhere more elevated.
An effort of moving upward.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English climben, clymben, from Old English climban (“to climb”), from Proto-West Germanic *klimban, from Proto-Germanic *klimbaną (“to climb, go up by clinging”), believed to be a nasalised variant of Proto-Germanic *klibaną, *klibāną (“to stick, cleave”), from Proto-Indo-European *gley- (“to stick”). Cognate with West Frisian klimme (“to climb”), Dutch klimmen (“to climb”), German klimmen (“to climb”), Old Norse klembra (“to squeeze”), Icelandic klifra (“to climb”). Related to clamber. See also clay, glue.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.