What does "pykrete" mean?

A solid substance made of water ice and sawdust, stronger than pure ice. Originally to be used in combination with a refrigeration system as hull material for warships. Used as a building material for ice buildings (such as winter ice hotels) and ice sculptures, usually without the originally envisioned embedded refrigeration systems.

Pykrete

//ˈpaɪkɹiːt// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
A solid substance made of water ice and sawdust, stronger than pure ice. Originally to be used in combination with a refrigeration system as hull material for warships. Used as a building material for ice buildings (such as winter ice hotels) and ice sculptures, usually without the originally envisioned embedded refrigeration systems. uncountable

Etymology

Blend of Pyke + concrete, Named after British inventor Geoffrey Pyke.

Related phrases

super pykrete super-pykrete

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.