climate change
noun
: significant and long-lasting change in the earth's climate and weather patterns
The half-tonne … turtles were thought to have died out 30,000 to 40,000 years ago because of climate change.—
New Scientist
New Scientist
especially, in current use
: such change associated with global warming
Concerns about greenhouse gas emissions and global climate change are renewed among scientists and the public with every new report about the possibility of melting icecaps and rising temperatures. —Randy Showstack
Randy Showstack Drought is a paleontological fact in the American West, but the latest desiccations have a new signature, and my region's climatologists, hydrologists, foresters, and water managers are nearly unanimous in their conviction that what we are seeing now is climate change, the anthropogenic kind, a consequence of too much CO2 and other greenhouse gases. —Kenneth Brower
Kenneth Brower Examples of climate change in a Sentence
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Anand cited deepening ties on defense, security, climate change, economic resilience and Arctic co-operation.
—Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2026
Ashley Miznazi is a climate change reporter for the Miami Herald funded by the Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation and MSC Cruises in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners.
—Ashley Miznazi, Miami Herald, 7 Feb. 2026
During a winter weather webinar by the Woodwell Climate Research Center, Cohen said that's an oversimplification of the influence of climate change and other patterns.
—Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 7 Feb. 2026
Just last week, Panera Bread, Zipcar, and Thermo Fisher Scientific each announced major closures or relocations out of state due to high taxes, high energy costs, and climate change regulations.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 7 Feb. 2026
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Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2026
Ashley Miznazi is a climate change reporter for the Miami Herald funded by the Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation and MSC Cruises in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners.
—Ashley Miznazi, Miami Herald, 7 Feb. 2026
During a winter weather webinar by the Woodwell Climate Research Center, Cohen said that's an oversimplification of the influence of climate change and other patterns.
—Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 7 Feb. 2026
Just last week, Panera Bread, Zipcar, and Thermo Fisher Scientific each announced major closures or relocations out of state due to high taxes, high energy costs, and climate change regulations.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 7 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for climate change
Cite this Entry
“Climate change.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/climate%20change. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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