seaway
Americannoun
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a way over the sea.
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the open sea.
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the progress of a ship through the waves.
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a more or less rough sea.
a hard vessel to steer in a seaway.
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a canal, enlarged river, etc., giving access to a landlocked port by oceangoing vessels.
noun
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a waterway giving access to an inland port, navigable by ocean-going ships
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a vessel's progress
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a rough or heavy sea
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a route across the sea
Etymology
Origin of seaway
before 1000; Middle English seewey, Old English sǣweg. See sea, way 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As freshwater input grew, the seaway gradually changed from salty to brackish and eventually to mostly freshwater, similar to conditions seen today in the Gulf of Bothnia.
From Science Daily • Dec. 15, 2025
The first mammal from South America discovered in the older beds was from a primate species, which is presumed to have rafted across the seaway.
From Science Daily • Feb. 20, 2024
The accident, in which 27 people including a 7-year-old girl died, is the worst on record involving migrants in the narrow seaway separating France and Britain.
From Reuters • Nov. 9, 2023
When the strike began, seaway management said over 100 vessels outside the system were affected, but that number was expected to grow as the strike goes on.
From Seattle Times • Oct. 26, 2023
Thus the discovery of a strait, or the cutting of a canal, at the Isthmus of Panama would at that time have opened to Europeans a shorter seaway to the Orient.
From The Panama Canal and its Makers by Cornish, Vaughan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
