patch ice

Noun

1. Ice in overlapping pieces in the sea.
   • The wind also veered now to the westward, and the vessles were hauled up to the south-east, steering between ice-bergs and broken patch ice; but scarcely any birds were yet to be seen; though, on the 20th, two nellies...
   • Adult seals tend to remain in the moving patch ice, but the young seals are often seen in ice free nearshore areas.· - 1979, United States. Bureau of Land Management, Final Environmental Impact Statement: Proposed...
   • Or maybe they fought on patch ice or ice-patch reef (where the water isolates the ice above, which becomes an eggshell-like membrane). - 2014, Marc Shell, Islandology: Geography, Rhetoric, Politics, page 141:
2. A coating of ice that covers an area of the ground, caused by snow that has melted and then refrozen.
   • There had already been flurries, and in some places the road down from the Overlook was slick with patch ice. - 1977, Stephen King, The Shining:
   • Patch ice clung to reeds and willow branches along the banks. - 1995, Robert Peters, For You, Lili Marlene: A Memoir of World War II, page 3:
   • Eliminate shadows that will cause patch ice. - 2007, Kenneth A. Brewer,, AASHTO Maintenance Manual for Roadways and Bridges, page 74:
3. Ice in a skating rink that has been repaired or resurfaced to fix imperfections, cracks, or rough spots.
   • It contains a 200 by 85-foot hockey ice surface and a 100 by 61-foot "patch ice" rink for figure skating, practice and instruction. - 1976, Vermont Life - Volumes 31-32, page 58:
   • The differences in usage by session/type of use are evident in Figure 4.4 which shows that there were more users in all categories, except patch ice and parties, in 1984/5 than 1985/6. - 1989, Lee Valley & Gillingham...
   • Some other schools bill for every individual element: freestyle ice, patch ice, lectures and lessons. - 1994, Debbi Wilkes, Greg Cable, Ice Time: A Portrait of Figure Skating, page 179: