open water

noun

plural open waters

: water that is clear of obstacles to passage or view : water that is open (see open entry 1 sense 7a)

The word marsh conjures up a mental picture of a soggy, flat area filled with cattails and other herbaceous vegetation, with ducks sitting on patches of open water.

—Robert H. Mohlenbrock

often, specifically : water that is free of ice

When the river froze in the fall, a mile of open water had been left between two mighty jams.

—Jack London

Polynyas were areas of persistent open water, found throughout the circumpolar arctic, places kept ice-free by currents and wind patterns.

—David R. Masiel

Because the penguins feed in the ocean, they typically set up colonies near open water and must establish new nests when the coastline becomes covered in … ice.

—Science News

Examples of open water in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Familiar features will include the Magic Edge cantilevered dining pods – Edge Series ships feature the iconic Magic Carpet, a multi-use space that seems to float over open water – and Infinite Verandas. —Nathan Diller, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2025

Enter Crescent Seas, a venture designed for those who want to blend life, work, and adventure on the open water. —Colin C. Campbell, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025

Hurricane Kiko is moving west over the open waters of the Pacific, according to forecasters, after the system strengthened from a tropical storm on Tuesday. —Joe Edwards, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Sep. 2025

Hazard on open waters The tip-off came from the Marine Corps and the Smögen Sea Rescue Company, who warned that the object appeared big enough to pose a hazard to shipping. —Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 2 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1625, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for open water

• annunciator
• imprimatur
• underwater
• backwater
• bathwater
• blackwater
• breakwater
• deepwater
• edgewater
• feedwater
• floodwater
• freshwater