Illustration of atoll
: a coral island consisting of a reef surrounding a lagoon
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If you are lucky enough to sail south and west of Sri Lanka in the Indian Ocean, you'll find the Maldives, a group of about 1,200 coral islands and sandbanks that form the Republic of Maldives. Many islands in that independent nation demonstrate the archetypal atoll, and geographers often use them to point out the characteristic features of such coral islands. Given how prevalent atolls are there, it isn't surprising that atoll comes from the name for that kind of island in Divehi, the official language of the Maldives.
Examples of atoll in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
On a tiny atoll in the Indian Ocean, there lives a flightless bird called the Aldabra rail.
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Big Think, 29 Oct. 2025
The atoll was briefly occupied between 1938 and 1963 when the British colonial administration encouraged people to settle there from the nearby southern Gilbert Islands.
—Katie Hunt, CNN Money, 28 Oct. 2025
The Italian retailer — which boasts flagships in Milan, Lugano, Switzerland, and Ibiza, Spain — has opened a temporary space inside the Patina Maldives luxury hospitality venue on Fari Islands, part of the North Malé atoll.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
During the same patrol, coast guard personnel discovered a second buoy at the northern end of Scarborough Shoal, after spotting one placed near the middle of the atoll earlier in the week, the official said.
—Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for atoll
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Big Think, 29 Oct. 2025
The atoll was briefly occupied between 1938 and 1963 when the British colonial administration encouraged people to settle there from the nearby southern Gilbert Islands.
—Katie Hunt, CNN Money, 28 Oct. 2025
The Italian retailer — which boasts flagships in Milan, Lugano, Switzerland, and Ibiza, Spain — has opened a temporary space inside the Patina Maldives luxury hospitality venue on Fari Islands, part of the North Malé atoll.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
During the same patrol, coast guard personnel discovered a second buoy at the northern end of Scarborough Shoal, after spotting one placed near the middle of the atoll earlier in the week, the official said.
—Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for atoll
Cite this Entry
“Atoll.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/atoll. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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