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• gulf
  gulf

  noun

  a portion of an ocean or sea partly enclosed by land.
• Gulf
  Gulf

  noun

  the Persian Gulf

gulf

American  

[guhlf] / gʌlf /

noun

• gulfs
  plural

1. a portion of an ocean or sea partly enclosed by land.

2. a deep hollow; chasm or abyss.

   Synonyms:

   split, rift, cleft, gully, gorge, canyon

3. any wide separation, as in position, status, or education.

4. something that engulfs or swallows up.

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verb (used with object)

1. to swallow up; engulf.

Gulf ¹ British  

/ ɡʌlf /

noun

1. the Persian Gulf

2. 1. the Gulf of Carpentaria

   2. (modifier) of, relating to, or adjoining the Gulf

      Gulf country

3. the Hauraki Gulf

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gulf ² British  

/ ɡʌlf /

noun

1. a large deep bay

2. a deep chasm

3. something that divides or separates, such as a lack of understanding

4. something that engulfs, such as a whirlpool

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verb

1. (tr) to swallow up; engulf

gulf Scientific  

/ gŭlf /

1. A large body of ocean or sea water that is partly surrounded by land.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• gulflike
  adjective
• gulfy
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• gulfs
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of gulf

1300–50; Middle English go ( u ) lf < Old French golfe < Italian golfo < Late Greek kólphos, Greek kólpos bosom, lap, bay

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Explanation

Deep, wide and often filled with water, a gulf is any vast and seemingly unbridgeable area. You've probably heard of the Gulf of Mexico, that large body of water that's partly surrounded by land. But a gulf doesn't have to be all about the ocean. If two people have vastly different cultures or opinions, you could say that there's a gulf between them — a large divide that neither side is willing or able to cross.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gulf Gulf gulfs

The leveraged fund earned an annualized average of 1.6 percentage points less than the underlying index over the long run—a cumulative gulf of more than 590 percentage points.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

The gulf between contribution rates of those paying loans and those without debt widened with age.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

Age gaps in digital literacy are a global concern, yet the gulf has widened massively in the hyper-connected and fast-ageing country, prompting national campaigns to bridge it.

From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026

But she had never faced anyone remotely close to Taylor's level and the gulf in class soon began to show.

From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026

Would we never be together, he a man and I a woman, standing shoulder to shoulder, hand in hand, with no gulf between us?

From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier

At the time, one possibility was that Simon could turn northward, enter the Gulf of California, and eventually make landfall.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026

Martin Kelly told BBC Verify that Iran is widening its attacks and targeting ships near the coast of Gulf Arab states and in the Gulf of Oman.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

The International Energy Agency said Wednesday that Gulf crude shipments rose by 4.4 million barrels a day to 13.9 million barrels a day in September, reaching more than 75% of prewar levels.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

Although Middle Eastern crude exports have recently rebounded, total supply from affected Gulf countries and Russia remains 5.5 million barrels a day below last year’s levels, according to the bank.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

Given the rising tensions in the Gulf of Tonkin, McNamara had been anticipating trouble.

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin

All nine countries lining the two connected gulfs, including Iran under any management, will want passage restored.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026

England have contributed to the biggest gulfs, beating Italy 74-0 and Ireland 69-0 in 2022.

From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2023

Crooms wants to narrow some of those gulfs with the grant.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 8, 2023

We are connected, but the fact that we’re so disconnected in so many different ways, just trying to remind each other that with all of those gulfs, there is a way back.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 13, 2022

It came from the stars and the black velocities, and the shining movements, and the silent gulfs of space.

From "The Martian Chronicles" by Ray Bradbury

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