From WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003) [wn]:
coast
n 1: the shore of a sea or ocean [syn: seashore, seacoast,
sea-coast]
2: a slope down which sleds may coast; "when it snowed they
made a coast on the golf course"
3: the area within view; "the coast is clear"
4: the act of moving smoothly along a surface while remaining
in contact with it; "his slide didn't stop until the
bottom of the hill"; "the children lined up for a coast
down the snowy slope" [syn: slide, glide]
v : move effortlessly; by force of gravity
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Coast \Coast\ (k[=o]st), n. [OF. coste, F. c[^o]te, rib, hill,
shore, coast, L. costa rib, side. Cf. Accost, v. t.,
Cutlet.]
1. The side of a thing. [Obs.] --Sir I. Newton.
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2. The exterior line, limit, or border of a country; frontier
border. [Obs.]
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From the river, the river Euphrates, even to the
uttermost sea, shall your coast be. --Deut. xi.
24.
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3. The seashore, or land near it.
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He sees in English ships the Holland coast.
--Dryden.
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We the Arabian coast do know
At distance, when the species blow. --Waller.
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The coast is clear, the danger is over; no enemy in sight.
--Dryden. Fig.: There are no obstacles. "Seeing that the
coast was clear, Zelmane dismissed Musidorus." --Sir P.
Sidney.
Coast guard.
(a) A body of men originally employed along the coast to
prevent smuggling; now, under the control of the
admiralty, drilled as a naval reserve. [Eng.]
(b) The force employed in life-saving stations along the
seacoast. [U. S.]
Coast rat (Zool.), a South African mammal ({Bathyergus
suillus}), about the size of a rabbit, remarkable for its
extensive burrows; -- called also sand mole.
Coast waiter, a customhouse officer who superintends the
landing or shipping of goods for the coast trade. [Eng.]
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Coast \Coast\ (k[=o]st), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Coasted; p. pr. &
vb. n. Coasting.] [OE. costien, costeien, costen, OF.
costier, costoier, F. c[^o]toyer, fr. Of. coste coast, F.
c[^o]te. See Coast, n.]
1. To draw or keep near; to approach. [Obs.]
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Anon she hears them chant it lustily,
And all in haste she coasteth to the cry. --Shak.
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2. To sail by or near the shore.
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The ancients coasted only in their navigation.
--Arbuthnot.
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3. To sail from port to port in the same country.
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4. [Cf. OF. coste, F. c[^o]te, hill, hillside.] To slide down
hill; to slide on a sled, upon snow or ice. [Local, U. S.]
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Coast \Coast\, v. t.
1. To draw near to; to approach; to keep near, or by the side
of. [Obs.] --Hakluyt.
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2. To sail by or near; to follow the coast line of.
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Nearchus, . . . not knowing the compass, was fain to
coast that shore. --Sir T.
Browne.
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3. To conduct along a coast or river bank. [Obs.]
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The Indians . . . coasted me along the river.
--Hakluyt.
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From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (19 Sep 2003) [foldoc]:
COAST
Cache On A STick