climbs

1. 1
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present indicative of climb.

   The narrow path climbs sharply toward the mountain summit.

   Each morning the temperature climbs well past ninety degrees.

   Note

   This is the -s form a singular subject takes in the present: the path climbs, she climbs. It works with or without an object. A road simply climbs, while a person climbs a ladder or a wall. It also covers the sport, as in she climbs every weekend. The same spelling is the plural noun, and the sentence settles which one you have: after a subject it is the verb.

   She climbs the ladder to check the gutters.

   He climbs at the indoor wall three evenings a week.

2. 2
   noun

   Plural of climb.

   Several of the hardest climbs in the region attract experienced mountaineers.

   The guidebook rates the local climbs by difficulty and length.

   Note

   Each act or effort of going up counts as one, so the noun takes a regular plural whenever ascents are tallied or compared: two hard climbs in a day, the steep climbs on a route. A number, an article or an adjective in front marks it as the noun rather than the present-tense verb, and it pairs naturally with words that measure effort, such as long, steep, hardest.

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