Juan de Fuca

American  

[wahn di fyoo-kuh, foo-] / ˈwɑn dɪ ˈfyu kə, ˈfu- /

Canadian, Juan de Fuca Strait

noun

1. Strait of Juan de Fuca, a strait that is the main outlet from the Salish Sea to the Pacific Ocean, located between Vancouver Island and northwestern Washington State, with the Canadian-U.S. boundary running through its middle. 100 miles (160 km) long; 15–20 miles (24–32 km) wide.

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Juan de Fuca British  

/ ˈdʒuːən dɪ ˈfjuːkə, xwan de ˈfuka /

noun

1. a strait between Vancouver Island (Canada) and NW Washington (US). Length: about 129 km (80 miles). Width: about 24 km (15 miles)

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Etymology

Origin of Juan de Fuca

First recorded in 1780–90; named after Greek navigator Juan de Fuca (1536–1602), who sailed in a Spanish expedition in 1592 to seek the Strait of Anián (now known as the Strait of Juan de Fuca ) by English sea captain and trader Charles William Barkley (1759–1832)

Example Sentences

Here, the Juan de Fuca and Explorer plates are slowly sliding beneath the North American plate.

From Science Daily • Apr. 29, 2026

To better understand these deep events, the team examined seismic data from the Cascadia Subduction Zone in the Pacific Northwest, where the Juan de Fuca plate is sliding beneath the North American plate.

From Science Daily • Nov. 22, 2025

Ferries chug several times a day between Port Angeles’ artsy downtown and Victoria, British Columbia, about a 90-minute ride across the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 19, 2024

The shipping lane bends west at Victoria to exit the Salish Sea through the Strait of Juan de Fuca, passing Port Angeles and Neah Bay, Washington, on the way out to the Pacific Ocean.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 29, 2024

Sequim sat on a wide expanse of prairie between the snowcapped Olympic Mountains to the south and the broad, blue Strait of Juan de Fuca to the north.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown