breakwater

noun

break·​wa·​ter ˈbrāk-ˌwȯ-tər 

-ˌwä-

: an offshore structure (such as a wall) protecting a harbor or beach from the force of waves

Examples of breakwater in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In 2024, 30,000 gallons of sewage flowed to the beach at the San Gabriel River Jetty to the Anaheim Bay breakwater from a Los Angeles County Sanitation spill. —Laylan Connelly, Oc Register, 6 June 2025

Specific measures include restoring 114 miles of breakwaters and 12.32 miles of oyster reef. —Suzanne Wright, USA Today, 4 June 2025

This could, for example, include investing in reforestation to store more carbon or restoring oyster reefs to function as a breakwater or to improve water quality. —Bill Frist, Forbes, 25 Sep. 2024

In the early 2000s, authorities began building infrastructure in the lagoon, including a breakwater at the mouth of Cerro Hermoso, where the town of El Zapotalito is located. —Gwendolina Duval, Vogue, 22 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1769, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for breakwater

• backwater
• bathwater
• blackwater
• deepwater
• edgewater
• feedwater
• floodwater
• freshwater
• granddaughter
• groundwater
• headwater
• manslaughter

Kids Definition

breakwater

noun

break·​wa·​ter ˈbrāk-ˌwȯt-ər 

-ˌwät-

: an offshore structure (as a wall) to protect a harbor or beach from the force of waves