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barrier reef
noun
: a coral reef roughly parallel to a shore and separated from it usually by a lagoon
Examples of barrier reef in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The two of them share a lagoon and are encircled by one barrier reef.
—Maggie Shipstead, Travel + Leisure, 30 Aug. 2023
Cozumel is perched at the northern tip of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System — the second-largest barrier reef in the world after the Great Barrier Reef.
—Meagan Drillinger, Travel + Leisure, 1 Mar. 2024
With warm water year-round and a quick speedboat trip out to the second-largest barrier reef system in the world, Tulum is an international diving hot spot.
—Meagan Drillinger, Travel + Leisure, 3 Mar. 2024
Roatan is part of a cluster of island archipelagos located off the northern coast of Honduras, surrounded by the largest barrier reef system in the Northern Hemisphere (and second in size to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef).
—Nerdwallet, Hartford Courant, 7 Jan. 2024
The Florida Reef is the only living coral barrier reef in the continental U.S.
Born in Mississippi, Buffett discovered Key West in the early 1970s.
—Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, 13 Oct. 2023
World & Nation Go underwater with the scientists rushing to rescue coral from the Lower 48’s only barrier reef
Aug. 1, 2023
In 1900, fewer than 5,500 people lived in Phoenix — mostly hardened farmers who would pack up their harvests and migrate to the mountains during the worst of the summer.
—Jack Herrera, Los Angeles Times, 3 Aug. 2023
Water temperatures off the coast of South Florida rose to unfathomable levels in recent days, leading scientists to fear for the fate of the only living coral barrier reef in the continental United States.
—Brady Dennis and Scott Dance, Anchorage Daily News, 1 Aug. 2023
This tropical paradise is also home to the world's third-largest barrier reef, blue holes, ocean caves, and miles of untouched beaches.
—Judy Koutsky, Travel + Leisure, 1 Dec. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'barrier reef.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1805, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near barrier reef
Cite this Entry
“Barrier reef.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/barrier%20reef. Accessed 18 Jun. 2024.
Kids Definition
barrier reef
noun
: a coral reef roughly parallel to a shore and separated from it by a lagoon
More from Merriam-Webster on barrier reef
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for barrier reef
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about barrier reef
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