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• marina
  marina

  noun

  a boat basin offering dockage and other service for small craft.
• Marina
  Marina

  noun

  a town in W California.

marina

¹ American  

[muh-ree-nuh] / məˈri nə /

noun

• marinas
  plural

1. a boat basin offering dockage and other service for small craft.

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Marina ² American  

[muh-ree-nuh] / məˈri nə /

noun

1. a town in W California.

2. a female given name.

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marina British  

/ məˈriːnə /

noun

1. an elaborate docking facility for pleasure boats

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• marinas
  plural

Etymology

Origin of marina

1795–1805; < Italian, Spanish, noun use of feminine of marino < Latin marīnus marine

Explanation

A marina is a dock, especially a fancy one used for sailboats and yachts. If you live in a harbor town, you can walk down the marina to watch boats come and go. A marina differs from a port, which is also a harbor where boats can dock, because it's designed for small boats and yachts, rather than large ships. Seaside towns and cities often have public marinas for mooring boats, and private yacht clubs also have marinas. The word marine, which means "pertaining to the sea," can help you remember that a marina is a place where boats dock. The Latin root of both is mare, "the sea."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

marina Marina marinas

"Las Vegas has done a phenomenal job in preserving and... reclaiming water," said Bruce Nelson, whose family has owned the lake's marina for almost 70 years.

From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026

After setting out from a marina in the San Francisco Bay Area, they passed under the Golden Gate Bridge to the Pacific Ocean and across the San Francisco Bay to Angel Island.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2026

Nearby were a golf club, a marina for yachts and hotels run by Sheraton and Spain’s Melia.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026

The streets of Saida were oddly busy on Thursday - the marina area filled with beach goers eating lunch, and not a tent for the displaced in sight.

From BBC ● May 28, 2026

“To the marina maybe? To have a chat with the Coast Guard?”

From "Flush" by Carl Hiaasen

Businesses like Kelly’s small Kreashen Studios USA, which provides video and podcasting space in Marina del Rey, depends on the region’s entertainment economy.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026

Despite another departure from the organising committee, French sports minister Marina Ferrari says there is "no concern about what comes next".

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

MapQuest is based in Denver, Colo., but it’s owned by Marina del Rey-based advertising platform System1.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

Her mother, 72-year-old Luz Marina, recently suffered a thrombosis, and her sister Sandra, 38, ended up in a wheelchair because of meningitis.

From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026

With Anya clasped to her side, Marina said, “Help your brother up, boys! We need to go warm these two up before their toes start to fall off!”

From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

The group also controls the tourism company Gaviota, which owns dozens of hotels, sometimes in partnership with international hotel chains, as well as marinas, restaurants, taxi services and car-rental companies.

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

According to news reports, flames destroyed homes, restaurants, campgrounds, marinas, and other facilities around the reservoirs.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 5, 2026

Where beach shacks once stood, now you’ll find estates hidden behind hedges and marinas packed with yachts.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026

Transportation construction spending, as the government defines it, refers to structures used for transportation, such as airport hangars, bus terminals, railroad tracks and marinas.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 2, 2026

They looked at boats moored close together in marinas, or alone at the ends of long docks.

From "Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt