I. coast 1 S3 W2 /kəʊst $ koʊst/ BrE AmE noun
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: coste , from Latin costa 'rib, side' ]
1 . [countable] the area where the land meets the sea ⇨ coastal
coast of
the west coast of Africa
We drove along the Pacific coast to Seattle.
on the coast
I used to live in a small village on the coast (=on the land near the sea) .
off the coast
a small island off the coast (=in the sea near the land) of Scotland
the first European to cross Africa coast to coast
a deserted stretch of coast
2 . the coast is clear informal if the coast is clear, it is safe for you to do something without being seen or caught
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COLLOCATIONS
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + coast
▪ rocky
the rocky coast of Maine
▪ rugged (=rough and uneven)
There are sandy beaches in the west and a rugged coast in the east.
▪ the east/west/north/south coast
We stayed on the south coast of the island.
▪ the Atlantic/Pacific/Mediterranean etc coast
the Mediterranean coast of Spain
■ coast + NOUN
▪ a coast road
In summer the coast road is very crowded.
▪ a coast path
There were wonderful sea views from the coast path.
▪ the coast route (=the way that follows the coast)
I’d prefer to take the coast route.
■ verbs
▪ follow the coast (=stay close to the coast)
The path follows the coast.
▪ hug the coast (=follow it very closely)
A small railway hugs the coast.
■ phrases
▪ a stretch of coast (=a long area of coast)
The 13th century chapel lies on a spectacular stretch of coast.
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THESAURUS
▪ coast noun [countable] the part of a country that is close to the sea:
The hurricane struck Florida’s coast.
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St Andrew’s is on the east coast of Scotland.
▪ shore noun [uncountable and countable] the land along the edge of the sea or along the edge of a lake:
The children managed to swim to shore but their father was swept out to sea.
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Vevey is a pretty town on the shores of Lake Geneva.
▪ the seashore the land along the edge of the sea, especially where there is sand and rocks:
Waves were crashing onto the seashore.
▪ coastline noun [countable] the edge of the land next to the sea. Used especially about a long length of land or the shape it makes, for example as seen from the air:
The road follows the rugged coastline of northern France for nearly 100 miles.
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Environmentalists are concerned about possible damage to some of the most beautiful stretches of Welsh coastline.
▪ seaboard noun [countable] the part of a country that is close to the sea. Used mainly about very large countries such as the US or Australia: western/eastern etc seaboard :
Australia’s eastern seaboard
| Atlantic/Pacific etc seaboard :
the Atlantic seaboard of the US
▪ the seaside British English a place at the edge of the sea where people go for a holiday:
The children love going to the seaside.
▪ by the sea British English , by the ocean American English on land next to the sea:
We bought a small cottage by the sea.
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He always walks by the ocean in the early morning.
II. coast 2 BrE AmE verb [intransitive]
1 . [usually + adverb/preposition] if a car or bicycle coasts, it moves without any effort from you or any power from the engine
coast down/around/along etc
Bev coasted downhill on her bicycle.
2 . to not try very hard to do something well – used to show disapproval:
Janey’s teacher says she’s just coasting at school.
3 . to be successful at something without much effort:
They scored three goals in the first half and from then on United were coasting.
coast to/through
The Ugandan relay team are coasting to victory.
4 . to sail along the coast while staying close to land