coastline

American  

[kohst-lahyn] / ˈkoʊstˌlaɪn /

noun

1. the outline or contour of a coast; shoreline.

2. the land and water lying adjacent to a shoreline.

---

coastline British  

/ ˈkəʊstˌlaɪn /

noun

1. the outline of a coast, esp when seen from the sea, or the land adjacent to it

---

Etymology

Origin of coastline

First recorded in 1855–60; coast + line ¹

Example Sentences

“Unfortunately”, he went on to say, most of the spare capacity in the world’s oil market is in the Middle East and generally exists through the vital strategic chokepoint off Iran’s western coastline.

From MarketWatch

The waters off the glittering coastlines of Britain's Caribbean territories have long been a mystery.

From BBC

LNG terminals sprang up along coastlines to process imports, prime ministers flew to the Middle East to secure gas deals and governments subsidized energy-saving technology like heat pumps.

From The Wall Street Journal

China is building new submarines that will put more of the U.S. mainland within range—and do so from waters closer to its own coastline.

From The Wall Street Journal

The devastating effect of storms on seabirds, including the thousands of puffins washing up on the coastline in the South West, Channel Islands and France, has been well documented.

From BBC

Related Words

• bank
• beach
• seaboard
• shore
• shoreline