ocean
nounUK /ˈəʊ.ʃən/ · US /ˈoʊ.ʃən/
Etymology
Etymology tree Ancient Greek Ὠκεᾰνός (Ōkeănós)der. Latin Ōceanusder. Old French occeanbor. Middle English *ocean, occean, occian, occyan English ocean From Middle English *ocean, occean, occian, occyan, from Old French occean (later reborrowed or reinforced by Middle French ocean), from Latin Ōceanus, originally from Ancient Greek Ὠκεανός (Ōkeanós, “Oceanus”, a water deity). Displaced native Old English gārseċġ. Also commonly referred to as the ocean sea, the sea of ocean (compare Latin mare ōceanum; Old French mer oceane, occeanne mer). Compare Saterland Frisian Oceoan (“ocean”), West Frisian oseaan (“ocean”), Dutch oceaan (“ocean”), German Low German Ozeaan (“ocean”), German Ozean (“ocean”), Danish ocean (“ocean”), Swedish ocean (“ocean”), French océan (“ocean”), Italian oceano (“ocean”). Doublet of Oceanus/Okeanos.
One of the large bodies of water separating the continents.
Water belonging to an ocean.
- The island is surrounded by ocean
Figuratively An immense expanse; any vast space or quantity without apparent limits.
- the boundless ocean of eternity
- an ocean of difference
2 more examples
- On the present occasion, Traddles was so hemmed in by the pagoda and the guitar-case, and Dora’s flower-painting, and my writing-table, that I had serious doubts of the possibility of his using his knife and fork; but he protested, with his own good-humour, ‘Oceans of room, Copperfield! I assure you, Oceans!’1849 May – 1850 November, Charles Dickens, The Personal History of David Copperfield, London: Bradbury & Evans, […], published 1850, →OCLC:
- Poison Ivy, Lord,'ll make you itch You're gonna need an ocean Of calamine lotion You'll be scratchin' like a hound The minute you start to mess around1959, “Poison Ivy”, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller (lyrics), performed by The Coasters:
A blue colour, like that of the ocean (also called ocean blue).
- Synonyms
- the ogin
- Derived terms
82 terms
a drop in the ocean, blue-ocean, boil the ocean, brown ocean effect, calm blue ocean, drop in the ocean, exo-ocean, hycean, hyperoceanic, interocean, it's not the size of the ship, it's the motion of the ocean, midocean, mid-ocean ridge, motion of someone's ocean, nonocean, ocean acidification, oceanarium, oceanaut, oceanbed, ocean blue, Ocean Bluff, Ocean County, ocean current, ocean dandruff, ocean depths, ocean dumping, ocean engineering, ocean eyes, ocean floor, oceanfront, oceanful, oceangoing, ocean-going, Ocean Grove, Oceania, oceanic, Ocean Island, oceanite, oceanization, oceanize, oceanless, oceanlike, ocean liner, ocean-lore, ocean lore, oceanographer, oceanography, oceanology, oceanophyte, ocean perch, ocean planet, ocean pout, ocean quahog, ocean ranching, Ocean Sea, Oceanside, oceanside, ocean station vessel, ocean sunfish, ocean tramp, Oceanus, oceanview, oceanward, oceanwards, oceanwater, oceanway, oceanwide, oceanwise, ocean world, oceanworthy, open ocean, paleo-ocean, Panthalassan Ocean, Panthalassic Ocean, piss in the ocean, primordial ocean, spit in the ocean, superocean, transocean, ur-ocean, why is the ocean near the shore, World Ocean- Hyponyms
- Antarctic Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Austral Ocean, Deucaledon Ocean, German Ocean, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Southern Ocean, South Polar Ocean