surf
Americannoun
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the swell of the sea that breaks upon a shore or upon shoals.
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the mass or line of foamy water caused by the breaking of the sea upon a shore, especially a shallow or sloping shore.
verb (used without object)
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surfs,
present (3rd person singular)
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surfed,
past participle, past
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surfing
present participle
-
to ride a surfboard.
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to float on the crest of a wave toward shore.
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to swim, play, or bathe in the surf.
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to search haphazardly, as for information on a computer network or an interesting program on television.
verb (used with object)
-
surfs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
surfed,
past participle, past
-
surfing
present participle
-
to ride a surfboard on.
We surfed every big wave in sight.
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to search through (a computer network or TV channels) for information or entertainment.
noun
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waves breaking on the shore or on a reef
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foam caused by the breaking of waves
verb
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(intr) to take part in surfing
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-
computing (on the internet) to move freely from website to website (esp in the phrase surf the net )
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to move freely between (TV channels or radio stations)
-
-
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informal to be carried on top of something
that guy's surfing the audience
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( in combination )
trainsurfing
-
Synonym Usage
See wave.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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surfsimple
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surfssimple
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have surfedperfect
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has surfedperfect
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am surfingprogressive
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are surfingprogressive
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is surfingprogressive
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have been surfingperfect progressive
-
has been surfingperfect progressive
Past
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surfedsimple
-
had surfedperfect
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was surfingprogressive
-
were surfingprogressive
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had been surfingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of surf
First recorded in 1600–10; earlier suff; of uncertain origin
Explanation
The surf is what you see when you stand on the beach and look at the ocean — waves rising and breaking on the shore. It’s also what you do when you ride those waves. Surf’s up, dude! Surf means "crashing waves," but it's also a verb meaning to ride those waves with a surf board. When you surf, you stand upright on a board and ride over breaking waves into the shore. A more figurative meaning of surf is "search casually," as in "channel surf," or click idly between TV stations. The origin of the word is a mystery, though it's thought to have first been used in reference to the Indian coast.
Vocabulary lists containing surf
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The National Hurricane Center said the worst of Rachel was over but "hazardous coastal conditions" could persist for days, with the highest waves coinciding with high tides, causing life-threatening surf and rip currents.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
These waves, combined with an incoming long-period southerly swell, will cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026
High surf battered parts of Huntington Beach, resulting in localized flooding on streets in the Sunset Beach area.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
But according to Wainwright, she particularly enjoyed spending time in the surf town: “She loved doing her flips in Laguna.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026
She turned and grabbed his arms to keep from falling in the surf.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
And it makes a seemingly banal title wryly funny: Ms. Andrade, a top competitive surfer, stands a little over 5 feet tall; the waves where she surfs at Nazaré, Portugal, can top 80 feet.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 24, 2026
Efrus, a 4-year-old Jack Russell terrier, surfs the waves in the Pacific waters off Peru.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 25, 2024
There’s another outstanding tight end in Ryner Swanson of Laguna Beach, a Brigham Young commit who also plays defense, surfs and doesn’t let one person bring him down.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2023
He grew up surfing at Makaha and now surfs all over the world, and has trained at the Slater wave pool and a Texas one.
From Washington Times ● May 29, 2023
Wanting to ask where he’s from and what his name is and if he surfs and how old he is and what school he’s going to next fall.
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
Suvorova writes about girls in school accusing her mother of being a gold digger, intentionally choosing rich boyfriends that would eventually become rich husbands while they lived in poverty and couch surfed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
It is in the house where Bryn famously "surfed the world wide web" to give Gavin directions from Barry to Essex in one of the first ever episodes.
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
I also watched a lot of movies on VHS tapes and surfed some of the world’s biggest waves along the coast.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026
Jeremy Grantham was born toward the tail end of the Great Depression, but has surfed plenty of subsequent booms and busts in his storied investment career.
From Barron's ● Dec. 31, 2025
Soon he was keeping to a steady eight knots, surging to nine and ten when she surfed and slid down the waves.
From "The Voyage Of The Frog" by Gary Paulsen
Lately, though, the seas have turned rough in “Surf City USA,” a conservative coastal community in Orange County south of Los Angeles known for its beach and surfing culture.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
El Niño can create a surfing paradise in Southern California.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026
"There are sharks in the ocean and we're still surfing... it's a can do, not a can't do - please change the mindset here," he said at the time.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
“There’s a level of surrender and humility that comes with surfing and that comes with being in nature. ... You have to be so present in such a way that makes you a stronger person.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
She seems to value Tyler L. for his shirts with surfing lizards on them.
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
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