definitions

continental shelf

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR continental shelf ON THESAURUS.COM

noun Physical Geography.

the part of a continent that is submerged in relatively shallow sea.

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Nearby words

continental philosophy, continental quilt, continental rift, continental rise, continental seating, continental shelf, continental slope, continental system, continentalism, continentality, continentalize

Origin of continental shelf

First recorded in 1940–45
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for continental shelf

continental shelf

noun

the sea bed surrounding a continent at depths of up to about 200 metres (100 fathoms), at the edge of which the continental slope drops steeply to the ocean floor
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

Science definitions for continental shelf

continental shelf

The part of the edge of a continent between the shoreline and the continental slope. It is covered by shallow ocean waters and has a very gentle slope.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Culture definitions for continental shelf

continental shelf

The region adjoining the coastline of a continent, where the ocean is no more than a few hundred feet deep. The shelf is built up from sediments washed down to the sea by rivers.

Note

The continental shelves are often valuable because of the mineral resources and abundant marine life found there. (See offshore drilling.)
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.