Gulf Stream

American  

noun

1. a warm ocean current flowing north from the Gulf of Mexico, along the eastern coast of the United States, to an area off the southeastern coast of Newfoundland, where it becomes the western terminus of the North Atlantic Current.

2. Gulf Stream system.

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Gulf Stream British  

noun

1. a relatively warm ocean current flowing northeastwards off the Atlantic coast of the US from the Gulf of Mexico

2. another name for North Atlantic Drift

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Gulf Stream Scientific  

1. A warm ocean current of the northern Atlantic Ocean off eastern North America. It flows northward and eastward from the Gulf of Mexico, eventually dividing into several branches. A major branch continues eastward to warm the coast and moderate the climate of northwest Europe.

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Gulf Stream Cultural  

1. A warm current that flows out of the Gulf of Mexico and northward through the Atlantic Ocean.

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Example Sentences

Noting that its waters are ice-free thanks to the Gulf Stream, the Norwegian consultancy Rystad Energy has, for example, suggested excluding the Barents Sea from the EU's definition of the Arctic.

From Barron's • Mar. 14, 2026

And the famous Gulf Stream is one of the currents that contributes to the AMOC.

From Slate • Feb. 17, 2024

Because climate change transforms the ocean currents like the Labrador Current, the warm Gulf Stream is expanding and prompting many North Atlantic fish species to leave their traditional habitats.

From Salon • Jan. 26, 2024

Barlow’s father, Chris Barlow, said he suspects the boat became disabled and drifted into the Gulf Stream, which swept it far to the north.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 27, 2023

He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf Stream and he had gone eighty-four days now without taking a fish.

From "The Old Man and The Sea" by Ernest Hemingway