barrier island
noun
: a long broad sandy island lying parallel to a shore that is built up by the action of waves, currents, and winds and that protects the shore from the effects of the ocean
Examples of barrier island in a Sentence
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For all of these creatures, the coast’s patchwork of barrier islands, beaches, sandbars, salt marshes, tidal creeks and estuaries are vitally important for survival.
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Charles Seabrook, AJC.com, 16 May 2026
Located east of the 17th Street Causeway on Fort Lauderdale’s barrier island, the church has 980 feet of seawall.
—Carlton Gillespie, Miami Herald, 16 May 2026
The four-mile-long sliver of sand and its quiet mainland just across the causeway are part of the barrier islands that make up South Carolina’s Hammock Coast.
—Kristy Tolley, Travel + Leisure, 13 May 2026
In my third novel, Ways to Find Yourself, the setting—a fictional barrier island off the East Coast—comes to serve as more than a pretty backdrop.
—Literary Hub, 7 May 2026
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Charles Seabrook, AJC.com, 16 May 2026
Located east of the 17th Street Causeway on Fort Lauderdale’s barrier island, the church has 980 feet of seawall.
—Carlton Gillespie, Miami Herald, 16 May 2026
The four-mile-long sliver of sand and its quiet mainland just across the causeway are part of the barrier islands that make up South Carolina’s Hammock Coast.
—Kristy Tolley, Travel + Leisure, 13 May 2026
In my third novel, Ways to Find Yourself, the setting—a fictional barrier island off the East Coast—comes to serve as more than a pretty backdrop.
—Literary Hub, 7 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for barrier island
Cite this Entry
“Barrier island.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/barrier%20island. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
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