coast 1 S3 W2 / kəʊst $ koʊst / 名词

1 [可数名词] the area where the land meets the sea → coastal

coast of

the west coast of Africa

We drove along the Pacific coast to Seattle.

on the coast

I used to live in a small village on the coast (= on the land near the sea ) .

off the coast

a small island off the coast (= in the sea near the land ) of Scotland

the first European to cross Africa coast to coast

a deserted stretch of coast

2 the coast is clear informal if the coast is clear, it is safe for you to do something without being seen or caught

COLLOCATIONS

ADJECTIVES/NOUN + coast

rocky the rocky coast of Maine

rugged (= rough and uneven ) There are sandy beaches in the west and a rugged coast in the east.

the east/west/north/south coast We stayed on the south coast of the island.

the Atlantic/Pacific/Mediterranean etc coast the Mediterranean coast of Spain

coast + NOUN

a coast road In summer the coast road is very crowded.

a coast path There were wonderful sea views from the coast path.

the coast route (= the way that follows the coast ) I’d prefer to take the coast route.

动词

follow the coast (= stay close to the coast ) The path follows the coast.

hug the coast (= follow it very closely ) A small railway hugs the coast.

短语

a stretch of coast (= a long area of coast ) The 13th century chapel lies on a spectacular stretch of coast.

THESAURUS

coast 名词 [可数名词] the part of a country that is close to the sea : The hurricane struck Florida’s coast. | St Andrew’s is on the east coast of Scotland.

shore 名词 [可数和不可数名词] the land along the edge of the sea or along the edge of a lake : The children managed to swim to shore but their father was swept out to sea. | Vevey is a pretty town on the shores of Lake Geneva.

the seashore the land along the edge of the sea, especially where there is sand and rocks : Waves were crashing onto the seashore.

coastline 名词 [可数名词] the edge of the land next to the sea. Used especially about a long length of land or the shape it makes, for example as seen from the air : The road follows the rugged coastline of northern France for nearly 100 miles. | Environmentalists are concerned about possible damage to some of the most beautiful stretches of Welsh coastline .

seaboard 名词 [可数名词] the part of a country that is close to the sea. Used mainly about very large countries such as the US or Australia : western/eastern etc seaboard : Australia’s eastern seaboard | Atlantic/Pacific etc seaboard : the Atlantic seaboard of the US

the seaside British English a place at the edge of the sea where people go for a holiday : The children love going to the seaside.

by the sea British English , by the ocean American English on land next to the sea : We bought a small cottage by the sea. | He always walks by the ocean in the early morning.