Great Barrier Reef

American  

noun

1. a coral reef parallel to the coast of Queensland, in NE Australia. 1,250 miles (2,010 km) long.

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Great Barrier Reef British  

noun

1. a coral reef in the Coral Sea, off the NE coast of Australia, extending for about 2000 km (1250 miles) from the Torres Strait along the coast of Queensland; the largest coral reef in the world

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Example Sentences

Australia's Great Barrier Reef, for instance, saw peak heat stress increase each year between 2014 and 2017.

From Barron's • Feb. 10, 2026

The Great Barrier Reef is headed for a "grim future" and will suffer a "rapid coral decline" by 2050 but parts may recover if global warming is kept below 2C, a new study has found.

From BBC • Nov. 5, 2025

A recent report found that parts of the Great Barrier Reef had suffered the largest annual decline in coral cover since records began nearly 40 years ago.

From BBC • Nov. 5, 2025

Suzanne Rees, 80, was hiking with fellow passengers of the Coral Adventure ship to a lookout spot on Lizard Island, in the Great Barrier Reef, on October 25.

From Barron's • Nov. 2, 2025

There was another thing I needed to travel to Queensland, Australia, at the edge of the Great Barrier Reef.

From "The Thing About Jellyfish" by Ali Benjamin