coast

[ kohst ]
See synonyms for coast on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the land next to the sea; seashore: the rocky coast of Maine.

  2. the region adjoining it: They live on the coast, a few miles from the sea.

  1. a hill or slope down which one may slide on a sled.

  2. a slide or ride down a hill or slope, as on a sled.

  3. Obsolete. the boundary or border of a country.

  4. the Coast, Informal. (in the U.S. and Canada) the region bordering on the Pacific Ocean; the West Coast: I'm flying out to the Coast next week.

verb (used without object)
  1. to slide on a sled down a snowy or icy hillside or incline.

  2. to descend a hill or the like, as on a bicycle, without using pedals.

  1. to continue to move or advance after effort has ceased; keep going on acquired momentum: We cut off the car engine and coasted for a while.

  2. to advance or proceed with little or no effort, especially owing to one's actual or former assets, as wealth, position, or name, or those of another: The actor coasted to stardom on his father's name.

  3. to sail along, or call at the various ports of, a coast.

  4. Obsolete. to proceed in a roundabout way.

verb (used with object)
  1. to cause to move along under acquired momentum: to coast a rocket around the sun.

  2. to proceed along or near the coast of.

  1. Obsolete. to keep alongside of (a person moving).

  2. Obsolete. to go by the side or border of.

Idioms about coast

  1. the coast is clear, no danger or impediment exists; no persons are in the path or vicinity: The boys waited until the coast was clear before climbing over the wall.

Origin of coast

1
First recorded in 1325–75; (noun) Middle English cost(e),<Anglo-French, Middle French, from Latin costa “rib, side, wall”; (verb) Middle English cost(e)yen, costen, from Anglo-French costeier,Old French costoier, derivative of the noun

synonym study For coast

1. See shore1.

Other words for coast

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use coast in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for coast

coast

/ (kəʊst) /


noun
  1. : Related adjective: littoral

    • the line or zone where the land meets the sea or some other large expanse of water

    • (in combination): coastland

  2. British the seaside

  1. US

    • a slope down which a sledge may slide

    • the act or an instance of sliding down a slope

  2. obsolete borderland or frontier

  3. the coast is clear informal the obstacles or dangers are gone

verb
  1. to move or cause to move by momentum or force of gravity

  2. (intr) to proceed without great effort: to coast to victory

  1. to sail along (a coast)

Origin of coast

1
C13: from Old French coste coast, slope, from Latin costa side, rib

Derived forms of coast

  • coastal, adjective
  • coastally, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012