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littoral

[ lit-er-uhl ]
/ ˈlɪt ər əl /
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See synonyms for: littoral / littorals on Thesaurus.com

adjective

of or relating to the shore of a lake, sea, or ocean.
(on ocean shores) of or relating to the biogeographic region between the sublittoral zone and the high-water line and sometimes including the supralittoral zone above the high-water line.
of or relating to the region of freshwater lake beds from the sublittoral zone up to and including damp areas on shore.Compare intertidal.

noun

a littoral region.

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Origin of littoral

First recorded in 1650–60; from Latin littorālis, variant of lītorālis “of the shore,” equivalent to lītor- (stem of lītus ) “shore” + -ālis, adjective suffix; see -al1; cf. Lido, lido

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH littoral

literal, littoral

Words nearby littoral

little woman, Little Women, Littlewood, littlie, Litt.M., littoral, littoral warfare, Littoria, Littré, Littre's hernia, lit up
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Words related to littoral

aquatic, naval, maritime, coastal, seagoing, saltwater, deep-sea, marshy, seaside, beach, coast, seashore, border, bank, sand, seaboard, waterfront, riverbank, shore, shoreline

Example sentences from the Web for littoral

British Dictionary definitions for littoral

littoral
/ (ˈlɪtərəl) /

adjective

of or relating to the shore of a sea, lake, or ocean
biology inhabiting the shore of a sea or lake or the shallow waters near the shorelittoral fauna

noun

a coastal or shore region

Word Origin for littoral

C17: from Late Latin littorālis, from lītorālis, from lītus shore
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

Scientific definitions for littoral

littoral
[ lĭt′ər-əl ]

Relating to the coastal zone between the limits of high and low tides. The littoral zone is subject to a wide range of environmental conditions, including high-energy wave action and intermittent periods of flooding and drying along with the associated fluctuations in exposure to solar radiation and extremes of temperature. Compare sublittoral.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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