shoreline

noun

shore·​line ˈshȯr-ˌlīn How to pronounce shoreline (audio)
1
: the line where a body of water and the shore meet
2
: the strip of land along the shoreline

Example Sentences

The road runs along the shoreline.
Recent Examples on the Web The fun starts on Main Street — including, in the past, pie-eating contests and games — then moves to the shoreline, where fireworks illuminate the sky over Jetties Beach that evening. Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 17 May 2023 On July 8, at about 6:15 p.m., Bend Racing flicked off the ’80s music blaring from their speaker and arrived at the finish, a rocky shoreline northwest of Fairbanks, close to the Arctic Circle. Max Ufberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 May 2023 That includes initiatives like a living shoreline, which is protected and stabilized by the use of natural materials like plants, sand, or rock. Amanda Gokee, BostonGlobe.com, 8 May 2023 For the quintessential beach town experience, Cape Cod boasts over 560 miles of beautiful shoreline, historic lighthouses, award-winning seafood and a rich history, including many American firsts. Roger Sands, Forbes, 7 May 2023 Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park, which is Michigan's largest, has 60,000 acres of old-growth forest, waterfalls, Lake Superior shoreline, rivers, trails and ridges, according to the state's Department of Natural Resources website. Hannah Kirby, Journal Sentinel, 7 May 2023 Northwest winds are forecast to skim the waters off the coast of the Peninsula, likely spilling cool breezes to the shoreline, bays and delta by Saturday evening, before engulfing the region with chilly, misty air by Sunday. Gerry Díaz, San Francisco Chronicle, 21 Apr. 2023 The long-term project would ultimately connect existing state and municipal parks, the Chugach National Forest and other land units that already have trails into an unbroken 500-mile corridor running from the Resurrection Bay shoreline in Seward to Fairbanks. Yereth Rosen, Anchorage Daily News, 18 Apr. 2023 Leaders in the beach town have long expressed worries that the turbines will be too close to the shoreline, damaging tourism and hurting wildlife. Christine Condon, Baltimore Sun, 29 Mar. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shoreline.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1852, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of shoreline was in 1852

Dictionary Entries Near shoreline

shoreless

shoreline

Shoreline

Cite this Entry

“Shoreline.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shoreline. Accessed 31 May. 2023.

Kids Definition

shoreline

noun
shore·​line -ˌlīn How to pronounce shoreline (audio)
: the line where a body of water touches the shore

Geographical Definition

Shoreline

geographical name

Shore·​line ˈshȯr-ˌlīn How to pronounce Shoreline (audio)
city in west central Washington on Puget Sound north of Seattle population 53,007
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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