coastline

C3O1A1S1T1L1I1N1E1

noun

The shape, outline, or boundary of a coast. (The term coastline is generally used to describe the approximate boundaries at relatively large spatial scales.)

“The sweep of the rocky Southern California coastline off Point Fermin.”

Less commonScrabble 11

Meanings

nouncoastline (countable and uncountable, plural coastlines)

plural coastlines

  1. countableuncountableThe shape, outline, or boundary of a coast. (The term coastline is generally used to describe the approximate boundaries at relatively large spatial scales.)

    The sweep of the rocky Southern California coastline off Point Fermin.

    4 more examples

    Tarbarrels and bonfires were lighted along the coastline of the four seas on the summits of the Hill of Howth, Three Rock Mountain, Sugarloaf, Bray Head, the mountains of Mourne, the Galtees, the Ox and Donegal and Sperrin peaks, the Nagles and the Bograghs, the Connemara hills, the reeks of M’ Gillicuddy, Slieve Aughty, Slieve Bernagh and Slieve Bloom.

    1922 February 2, James Joyce, “[Episode 12: Cyclops]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company […], →OCLC, part II [Odyssey], page 328

    With the sea below us grey and storm swept, and the coast line vague in the driving rain, we forged our way up the bank to breast the summit at 37 m.p.h.

    1947 January and February, O. S. Nock, “"The Aberdonian" in Wartime”, in Railway Magazine, page 8

    The journey is worth an article in itself, but all I can give is a flavour of a railway which traverses a bleak but dramatic coastline that's regularly battered by the elements - especially around Parton, where the line is constantly threatened by the sea.

    2022 November 2, Paul Bigland, “New trains, old trains, and splendid scenery”, in RAIL, number 969, pages 56–57

    The 71-year-old American, who relocated to the Indonesian destination in 2022, is a regular fixture on the sands of Sanur, which extends along the southeastern coastline of the tropical destination, known as the “Island of the Gods.”

    2025 July 31, Tamara Hardingham-Gill, “‘Everyone I know in the US who has a conscience wants to leave’: Why this American woman relocated to Bali”, in CNN

    Synonyms: coast, beachfront, coastland, shore, shoreline, seashore, seaside, oceanfront

Synonyms & antonyms

nounThe shape, outline, or boundary of a coast. (The term coastline is generally used to describe the approximate boundaries at relatively large spatial scales.)

Origin

Translations

Bulgarian брегова́ ли́ния
  • брегова́ ли́ния (bregová línija)the shape of a coast
Catalan línia de costa, riba
  • línia de costathe shape of a coast
  • ribathe shape of a coast
Chinese Mandarin 海岸線 /海岸线
  • 海岸線 /海岸线 (hǎi'ànxiàn)the shape of a coast
Czech pobřežní čára, pobřeží
  • pobřežní čárathe shape of a coast
  • pobřežíthe shape of a coast
Danish kystlinje
  • kystlinjethe shape of a coast
Dutch kustlijn
  • kustlijnthe shape of a coast
Esperanto marbordo
  • marbordothe shape of a coast
Finnish rantaviiva
  • rantaviivathe shape of a coast
French rive, littoral
  • rivethe shape of a coast
  • littoralthe shape of a coast
German Küstenlinie
  • Küstenliniethe shape of a coast
Japanese 海岸線
  • 海岸線 (kaigansen)the shape of a coast
Māori tahatika, tātika
  • tahatikathe shape of a coast
  • tātikathe shape of a coast
Norwegian Bokmål kystlinje
  • kystlinjethe shape of a coast
Portuguese linha costeira
  • linha costeirathe shape of a coast
Romanian coastă, litoral
  • coastăthe shape of a coast
  • litoralthe shape of a coast
Russian берегова́я ли́ния
  • берегова́я ли́ния (beregovája línija)the shape of a coast
Spanish línea costera
  • línea costerathe shape of a coast
Swahili mwambao
  • mwambaothe shape of a coast
Swedish kustlinje
  • kustlinjethe shape of a coast
Ukrainian бережи́на
  • бережи́на (berežýna)the shape of a coast
Welsh morlin
  • morlinthe shape of a coast

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

coastline. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/coastline

MLA

“coastline.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/coastline. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “coastline,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/coastline.

Source: coastline on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.