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An icebreaker is a special purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters. Although the term usually refers to icebreaking ships, it can also refer to smaller vessels (e.g., icebreaking boats that were used on the Canals of Great Britain in the days of commercial carrying).

For a ship to be considered an icebreaker it requires three components a strengthened hull, an ice-clearing shape, and the power to push through, none of which are possessed by most normal ships.

To pass through ice-covered water, an icebreaker uses its great momentum and power to drive its bow up onto the ice, breaking the ice under the immense weight of the ship. Because a buildup of broken ice in front of a ship can slow it down much more than the breaking of the ice itself, the speed of the ship is increased by having a specially designed hull to direct the broken ice around or under the vessel. The external components of the ship's propulsion system (propellers, propeller shafts, etc.) are at even greater risk of damage than the vessel's hull, so the ability for an icebreaker to propel itself onto the ice, break it, and successfully clear the debris from its path is essential for its safety.

Even in the earliest days of polar exploration, ice-strengthened ships were used. These were originally wooden and based on existing designs, but reinforced, particularly around the waterline with double planking to the hull and strengthening cross members inside the ship. Bands of iron were wrapped around the outside. Sometimes metal sheeting was placed at the bows, stern and along the keel. Such strengthening was designed to help the ship push through ice and also to protect the ship in case it was "nipped" by the ice. Nipping occurs when ice floes around a ship are pushed against the ship trapping it as if in a vise and causing damage. This vice-like action is caused by the force of winds and tides on ice formations. Although such wind and tidal forces may be exerted many miles away, the ice transmits the force.

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