pelagic

[ puh-laj-ik ]

/ pəˈlædʒ ɪk /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pelagic ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

of or relating to the open seas or oceans.

living or growing at or near the surface of the ocean, far from land, as certain organisms.

RELATED WORDS

aquatic, marine, thalassic

Nearby words

pelage, pelagian, pelagian islands, pelagianism, pelagianize, pelagic, pelagic division, pelagius, pelagius i, pelagius ii, pelargonic

Compare neritic, oceanic.

Origin of pelagic

1650–60; < Latin pelagicus < Greek pelagikós, equivalent to pélag(os) the sea + -ikos -ic

Related formsnon·pe·lag·ic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pelagic

No anterior tentacles, and no dorsal appendages; body laterally compressed, transparent; pelagic.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 5|Various
Both British and American sealers have been known to fly the Japanese flag when engaged in pelagic sealing in forbidden waters.
Alaska|Ella Higginson
The decline of the herd is thus made synonymous with the rise of pelagic sealing.
Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, March 1899|Various
I am aware that there are two or three other pelagic shells, but at the time of this narrative they were not known.
The King's Own|Captain Frederick Marryat

If pelagic sealing were stopped to-day the herd would naturally begin to increase.
Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, March 1899|Various

British Dictionary definitions for pelagic

pelagic

/ (pɛˈlædʒɪk) /

adjective

of or relating to the open seapelagic whaling

(of marine life) living or occurring in the upper waters of open sea

(of geological formations) derived from material that has fallen to the bottom from the upper waters of the sea

Word Origin for pelagic

C17: from Latin pelagicus, from pelagus, from Greek pelagos sea

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

Word Origin and History for pelagic

pelagic

adj.

"pertaining to the sea," 1650s, from Latin pelagicus, from Greek pelagikos, from pelagos "sea, high sea, open sea, main," from PIE *pelag- "to spread out" (cf. Greek plagos "side," Latin plaga "hunting net, curtain, region"), possibly from root *plak- (1) "to spread out, be flat" (see placenta).

Science definitions for pelagic

pelagic

[ pə-lăj′ĭk ]

Relating to or living in or on oceanic waters. The pelagic zone of the ocean begins at the low tide mark and includes the entire oceanic water column. The pelagic ecosystem is largely dependent on the phytoplankton inhabiting the upper, sunlit regions, where most ocean organisms live. Biodiversity decreases sharply in the unlit zones where water pressure is high, temperatures are cold, and food sources scarce. Pelagic waters are divided, in descending order, into the epipelagic, mesopelagic, bathypelagic, abyssopelagic, and hadopelagic zones.