cay

[key, kee]

noun

1. a small low island; key.

cay

/ kiː, keɪ /

noun

1. Also called: key. a small low island or bank composed of sand and coral fragments, esp in the Caribbean area

cay

1. A small, low island composed largely of coral or sand.

2. Also called key

Word History and Origins

Origin of cay¹

1700–10; < Spanish cayo; key ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of cay¹

C18: from Spanish cayo, probably from Old French quai _quay

Example Sentences

From the point of view of the Philippines this, and the fact that Pagasa is solid land, not a partially submerged reef or sandy cay, strengthens its legal claims in the area.

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Staniel Cay is in the Exumas, an archipelago of hundreds of cays and islands in the outer Bahamas, beginning about thirty-five miles southeast of Nassau.

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One person from the missing vessel spent 30 hours in the water before also being washed ashore at Bedwell Island, a small sandy cay within the Clarke Reef coral atoll.

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Nicaraguan soldiers began preparing the evacuation of inhabitants of islands and cays around the town of Sandy Bay Sirpi.

Read more on Seattle Times

What used to be a cay is now a spit of sand encircled by a coral reef.

Read more on Washington Post