tidal

[tahyd-l]

adjective

1. of, pertaining to, characterized by, or subject to tides: tide.

   a tidal current.

2. dependent on the state of the tide as to time of departure.

   a tidal steamer.

tidal

/ ˈtaɪdəl /

adjective

1. relating to, characterized by, or affected by tides

   a tidal estuary

2. dependent on the state of the tide

   a tidal ferry

3. (of a glacier) reaching the sea and discharging floes or icebergs

Other Word Forms

• tidally adverb
• nontidal adjective
• untidal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of tidal¹

First recorded in 1800–10; tide ¹ + -al ¹

Example Sentences

In the meantime, dangerously overcrowded inflatable boats continue to leave the coast on an almost daily basis, from a shallow tidal canal near the port of Dunkirk.

Read more on BBC

"Our modeling showed that the tidal forces acting between these galaxies, alongside their proximity to the massive Virgo cluster of galaxies, played a crucial role in the gas dynamics we observed," Professor Staveley-Smith said.

Read more on Science Daily

A tidal disruption event occurs when a star strays too close to a massive black hole and is pulled apart by its immense gravitational forces.

Read more on Science Daily

Realistically, from a human-power perspective, all a queer minority can do in the face of a majority tidal shift is bravely let the show go on until someone burns down the theatre.

Read more on Salon

The contest is staged in a former slate quarry that was flooded by a tidal wave in 1881.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• falling www.thesaurus.com
• rolling 
• running 
• sinuous 
• streaming