continental shelf

noun

: a shallow submarine plain of varying width forming a border to a continent and typically ending in a comparatively steep slope to the deep ocean floor

Illustration of continental shelf

Illustration of continental shelf
  • 1 seashore
  • 2 continental shelf
  • 3 continental slope
  • 4 abyssal plain
  • 5 seamount

Examples of continental shelf in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Russia's Arctic continental shelf contains more than 85 trillion cubic meters of natural gas and 17 billion metric tons of oil, Russian state media reported in 2022. Ellie Cook, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Aug. 2025 The United States should, therefore, instead prioritize exploring and recovering critical minerals within its own continental shelf, experts said. Dylan Butts, CNBC, 28 Aug. 2025 The islands that became the Outer Banks fringing the North Carolina coast first appeared 15,000 years ago, when sea levels dropped and the nation’s shoreline migrated inward from the continental shelf, Young said. Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2025 Similar to above-ground canyons, they are carved into the seafloor and continental shelf through centuries of erosion. Stephanie Edwards, Discover Magazine, 22 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for continental shelf

Word History

First Known Use

1892, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of continental shelf was in 1892

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Cite this Entry

“Continental shelf.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/continental%20shelf. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

continental shelf

noun
: a shallow submarine plain of varying width forming a border to a continent and typically ending at the continental slope

More from Merriam-Webster on continental shelf

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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