Meaning & use
shoreline
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Meanings
nouncountable
The edge or boundary where land meets a body of water, especially as seen from a distance.
Grammar: Countable; can be used with 'a' or in the plural: a rocky shoreline, along the shorelines of the lake.
Patterns
- along the shoreline
- on the shoreline
- a rocky/sandy shoreline
We walked along the shoreline, looking for shells.
The storm eroded miles of shoreline.
From the boat, the shoreline looked like a thin green line.
nouncountable
The land along the edge of a sea, lake, or river, considered as a strip or area.
Grammar: Often used in the plural to talk about multiple strips of land: protect the shorelines of the Great Lakes.
Patterns
- protect the shoreline
- the shoreline of something
- shoreline development
The town is working to protect its shoreline from further development.
Houses along the shoreline are at risk from flooding.
The shoreline of the lake is dotted with small cabins.
Word forms
| plural | shorelines |
|---|
Common combinations
- along the shoreline
- They strolled along the shoreline at sunset.
- rocky shoreline
- The rocky shoreline made it hard to land the boat.
- shoreline erosion
- Shoreline erosion has become a serious problem here.
- protect the shoreline
- New laws aim to protect the shoreline from pollution.
- shoreline management
- Shoreline management includes building sea walls.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
Commonly confused: shoreline or shore?
shoreline vs shore
Shore is the land itself, while shoreline is the line where the land meets the water.
Practice
Choose the correct word: The _____ was covered with rocks and seaweed.
Choose one answer.
Shoreline fits because it refers to the actual edge where land meets water, which can be covered with rocks. 'Shore' is the broader land area; 'coast' is a larger region; 'bank' is for rivers.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “shoreline”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.