dictionary definitions for "coast"


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.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     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.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              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.]
        [1913 Webster]

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.]
        [1913 Webster]
  
              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.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     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.]
        [1913 Webster]

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.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              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.]
        [1913 Webster]
  
              The Indians . . . coasted me along the river.
                                                    --Hakluyt.
        [1913 Webster]

From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (19 Sep 2003) [foldoc]:

  COAST
  
     Cache On A STick
  


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