tide

¹ American  

[tahyd] / taɪd /

noun

• tides
  plural

1. the periodic rise and fall of the waters of the ocean and its inlets, produced by the attraction of the moon and sun, and occurring about every 12 hours.

2. the inflow, outflow, or current of water at any given place resulting from the waves of tides.

3. flood tide.

4. a stream or current.

5. anything that alternately rises and falls, increases and decreases, etc..

   the tide of the seasons.

6. current, tendency, or drift, as of events or ideas.

   the tide of international events.

7. any extreme or critical period or condition.

   The tide of her illness is at its height.

8. a season or period in the course of the year, day, etc. (now used chiefly in combination).

   wintertide; eventide.

9. Ecclesiastical. a period of time that includes and follows an anniversary, festival, etc.

10. Archaic. a suitable time or occasion.

11. Obsolete. an extent of time.

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verb (used without object)

tided, tiding

1. to flow as the tide; flow to and fro.

2. to float or drift with the tide.

verb (used with object)

tided, tiding

1. to carry, as the tide does.

verb phrase

1. tide over

   1. to assist in getting over a period of difficulty or distress.

   2. to surmount (a difficulty, obstacle, etc.); survive.

idioms

1. turn the tide, to reverse the course of events, especially from one extreme to another.

   The Battle of Saratoga turned the tide of the American Revolution.

tide ² American  

[tahyd] / taɪd /

verb (used without object)

Archaic.

tided, tiding

1. to happen or befall.

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tide ¹ British  

/ taɪd /

noun

1. the cyclic rise and fall of sea level caused by the gravitational pull of the sun and moon. There are usually two high tides and two low tides in each lunar day See also tide-generating force neap tide spring tide

2. the current, ebb, or flow of water at a specified place resulting from these changes in level

   the tide is coming in

3. See ebb flood

4. a widespread tendency or movement

   the tide of resentment against the government

5. a critical point in time; turning point

   the tide of his fortunes

6. dialect a fair or holiday

7. (in combination) a season or time

   Christmastide

8. rare any body of mobile water, such as a stream

9. archaic a favourable opportunity

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verb

1. to carry or be carried with or as if with the tide

2. (intr) to ebb and flow like the tide

tide ² British  

/ taɪd /

verb

1. archaic (intr) to happen

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tide Scientific  

/ tīd /

1. The regular rise and fall in the surface level of the Earth's oceans, seas, and bays caused by the gravitational attraction of the Moon and to a lesser extent of the Sun. The maximum high tides (or spring tides) occur when the Moon and Sun are directly aligned with Earth, so that their gravitational pull on Earth's waters is along the same line and is reinforced. The lowest high tides (or neap tides) occur when the Moon and Sun are at right angles to each other, so that their gravitational pull on Earth's waters originates from two different directions and is mitigated. Tides vary greatly by region and are influenced by sea-floor topography, storms, and water currents.

2. See also ebb tide flood tide neap tide spring tide

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tide More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing tide

• stem the tide
• swim against the current (tide)
• swim with the tide
• time and tide
• turn of the tide

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• tidelessness
  noun
• tideful
  adjective
• tideless
  adjective
• tidelike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• tides
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of tide¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English tīd “time, hour”; cognate with Dutch tijd, German Zeit, Old Norse tīth; akin to time

Origin of tide²

First recorded before 1000; Middle English tiden, Old English tīdan; see betide

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Explanation

The tide is the daily rise and fall of the sea level. You can count on the regular changing patterns of the tide, unless of course a tsunami is headed your way. In a figurative sense, tide can mean a rising swell of support or unified feeling about a certain opinion or topic. So you may surf at high tide but also enjoy the rising tide of enthusiasm about surfing. If there is a wave of anything — immigration, inflation, terror — it can be referred to as a tide. No surfboards can navigate those tricky waves.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tide tides tided tiding

How and why did the tide turn against this sticky substance?

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026

By seeking public office, “I was dipping my big toe into a tide of ambition, ego, and irrationality,” he wrote later.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

The coastal flooding advisories farther north, in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, extend through Monday morning’s high tide.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026

He announced that the UK would set up a new centre to "stem the poisonous tide" of disinformation.

From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026

But the tide of luck had already turned.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

You can settle in, say, Culver City, which is several miles inland, and wait for rising tides to arrive.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

The protective fencing around the nesting ground was washed away in high tides earlier this year.

From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026

Proposed explanations have included differences in how the Moon's original magma ocean circulated, a massive collision, heating caused by gravitational tides, and uneven development of the lunar crust.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026

This winter, if El Niño-fueled storms arrive during king tides, it’s likely that California will see significant coastal erosion, flooding and damage, Cayan said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026

They sang about gathering by rivers, beautiful, beautiful rivers, with bright angels and crystal tides.

From "Krik? Krak!" by Edwidge Danticat

The invention has tided him over as the semester ended this week.

From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2025

These experiences filled his time on the rigs, and tided over his growing impatience about his university aspirations being placed on hold until this assignment was over.

From Slate ● Dec. 16, 2023

They then went back to their changing room, showered and changed, tided up, removed the rubbish and left a note for ground staff reading “thank you” in Russian.

From The Guardian ● Jul. 15, 2018

Co-creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss tided us over with a Victorian-set Sherlock Christmas special last winter, but we’re ready to see the modern Sherlock take on the mysteriously resurrected Moriarty.

From Time ● Jul. 20, 2016

The first page was tided: A Pictorial Record of Man's Economic Progress “This is terribly ambitious,” I said.

From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright

She was proved correct, and was tiding up broken statues when spoke to the BBC.

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2025

No. It’s an appetizer for better things to come, an amuse-bouche at best — at worst, a placeholder meal of cinematic comfort food, tiding us all over until it’s summer blockbuster season again.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 1, 2023

That’s not much, but it’s still the best discount available on the classic VR-reimagining of the Capcom classic, tiding you over before the new remake comes out in 2023.

From The Verge ● Jun. 20, 2022

It was the last get-together of the year, and a warm and caloric tiding for the new one about to begin.

From New York Times ● Jan. 4, 2013

Vetch furnishes essential spring forage for bees before the alfalfa is in bloom, tiding them over this early season so that they are ready to pollinate the alfalfa.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

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Related Words

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