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exclusive economic zone

British  

noun

  1. Sometimes shortened to: economic zone.  the coastal water and sea bed around a country's shores, to which it claims exclusive rights for fishing, oil exploration, fishing, etc

"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

Example Sentences

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With overseas territories across the Pacific, Caribbean and Indian oceans, France has the second-largest maritime exclusive economic zone in the world after the United States.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 23, 2026

Though made up of tiny islands, Micronesia’s exclusive economic zone is larger than Greenland’s because it stretches over a vast area of ocean.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 19, 2026

Access to the islands’ resources is simpler, because the metals lie within the country’s exclusive economic zone.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 27, 2025

Although these islands are uninhabited, sovereignty over Matthew and Hunter allows New Caledonia, and therefore France, to have a large exclusive economic zone.

From Barron's • Dec. 18, 2025

Defence Secretary John Healey called the action "deeply dangerous", saying the Yantar had repeatedly crossed in and out of the UK's exclusive economic zone.

From BBC • Dec. 7, 2025