COAST

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does coast mean? 

• COAST (noun)
  The noun COAST has 4 senses:

1. the shore of a sea or ocean

2. a slope down which sleds may coast

3. the area within view

4. the act of moving smoothly along a surface while remaining in contact with it

  Familiarity information: COAST used as a noun is uncommon.

• COAST (verb)
  The verb COAST has 1 sense:

1. move effortlessly; by force of gravity

  Familiarity information: COAST used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• COAST (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The shore of a sea or ocean

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Synonyms:

coast; sea-coast; seacoast; seashore

Hypernyms ("coast" is a kind of...):

shore (the land along the edge of a body of water)

Meronyms (parts of "coast"):

foreshore (the part of the seashore between the highwater mark and the low-water mark)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "coast"):

litoral; littoral; littoral zone; sands (the region of the shore of a lake or sea or ocean)

landfall (the seacoast first sighted on a voyage (or flight over water))

seaboard; seaside (the shore of a sea or ocean regarded as a resort)

tideland (land near the sea that is overflowed by the tide)

Instance hyponyms:

Barbary Coast (the Mediterranean coast of northern Africa that was famous for its Moorish pirates)

Aeolia; Aeolis (an ancient coastal region of northwestern Asia Minor (including Lesbos) where the Aeolians founded several cities around 1100 BC)

Atlantic Coast (a coast of the Atlantic Ocean)

Gulf Coast (a seashore of the Gulf of Mexico)

Pacific Coast (a coast of the Pacific Ocean)

Derivation:

coastal (located on or near or bordering on a coast)

coastal (of or relating to a coast)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A slope down which sleds may coast

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Context example:

when it snowed they made a coast on the golf course

Hypernyms ("coast" is a kind of...):

incline; side; slope (an elevated geological formation)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The area within view

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Context example:

the coast is clear

Hypernyms ("coast" is a kind of...):

aspect; panorama; prospect; scene; view; vista (the visual percept of a region)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The act of moving smoothly along a surface while remaining in contact with it

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

coast; glide; slide

Context example:

the children lined up for a coast down the snowy slope

Hypernyms ("coast" is a kind of...):

motion; move; movement (the act of changing location from one place to another)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "coast"):

sideslip; skid; slip (an unexpected slide)

snowboarding (the act of sliding down a snow-covered slope while standing on a snowboard)

Derivation:

coast (move effortlessly; by force of gravity)

• COAST (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they coast    ... he / she / it coasts   
Past simple: coasted   
Past participle: coasted   
-ing form: coasting   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Move effortlessly; by force of gravity

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "coast" is one way to...):

glide (move smoothly and effortlessly)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "coast"):

freewheel (coast in a vehicle using the freewheel)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

coast (the act of moving smoothly along a surface while remaining in contact with it)

coaster (someone who coasts)

 Context examples 

So scientists were surprised to learn that giant kelp maintains its impressive growth rates year-round, even in summer and early fall when ocean currents along the California coast stop delivering nutrients.

(In search of an undersea kelp forest's missing nitrogen, National Science Foundation)

This deprives people within 100 kilometres of the coast, especially children, of important and easily accessible nutrients.

(Fairer fish trade could fix nutrient deficiencies in coastal countries, SciDev.Net)

The idea that chocolate might be good for you stems from studies of the Kuna Indians, who live on islands off the coast of Panama.

(Can Chocolate Really Be Good for You?, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Scientists know that urea has a persistent presence in the coastal ocean, not only off the coast of California but in coastal oceans globally.

(Giant kelp switches diet when key nutrient becomes scarce, National Science Foundation)

He says the sanctuary will expand the protection area for these species, covering from the African coast to the South American coast.

(Brazil to support South Atlantic whale sanctuary bid, Agência BRASIL)

Surtsey is an island that began forming during a similar kind of explosive, marine eruption off the coast of Iceland in 1963.

(NASA Shows New Tongan Island Made of Tuff Stuff, Likely to Persist Years, NASA)

One form of silica, quartz, is a major component of sand found on beaches along the U.S. coasts.

(Exploding Stars Make Key Ingredient in Sand, Glass, NASA)

Why does he make it any business of his, to wonder at what I do? —at my taking my family to one part of the coast or another?

(Emma, by Jane Austen)

In his company, my first business was to go to that part of the coast where my rebellious crew had ordered me to be set on shore.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

Then, having given him the idea that the coast was clear, I kept guard as I have described.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)