bicoastal

adjective

bi·​coast·​al (ˌ)bī-ˈkō-stəl 

: of, relating to, or occurring on both the east and west coasts of the U.S.

And everybody girded for a day of bicoastal press conferences in Washington, D.C., and Redmond, Wash., marked by a ritual exchange of tortured metaphors …

—Steven Levy

… an animal behaviorist with a bicoastal practice who hosts pet-advice radio shows in New York and Los Angeles.

—David Lida

After conducting a bicoastal relationship, Kevin and Linda married in 1989.

—Toby Kahn

also : living or working on both the east and west coasts of the U.S.

Similarly, one now sees frequent references to "bicoastal" people who go back and forth between New York and Los Angeles.

—Hans Fantel

The actor flies back and forth as often as his schedule will allow, but being bicoastal has more than its share of drawbacks.

—Mary Alice Kellogg

Did you know?

How Bicoastal Changed Its Meaning

Bicoastal is a word whose meaning shifted in the 1970s to reflect our mobile society. Prior to that, the term was occasionally used in general contexts involving both coasts (as in "a bicoastal naval defense"). These days bicoastal is almost always associated with people who make frequent trips between one coast and the other. An article with a Los Angeles dateline published in The New York Times in 1983 declared bicoastal to be "a popular term among an affluent, mobile set of Angelenos." But Angelenos weren't the only ones using the term-by that time, the word had already been appearing in national magazines.

Examples of bicoastal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In his own post on May 30, Goodnough gave a little update on the pair’s bicoastal relationship while Bertinelli was still enjoying a break from social media. —Antonia Debianchi, Peoplemag, 6 June 2024

And the World Series is set: The Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees will go head-to-head in a bicoastal matchup. —Claire Malon, Chicago Tribune, 26 Oct. 2024

Hours before the opening pitch of the World Series, L.A. Archbishop José H. Gomez and New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan — leaders of the nation’s two largest Roman Catholic archdioceses — placed their own bicoastal bet over the outcome of the Fall Classic. —Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2024

This October brings the rarest of duels, and the bicoastal nature of it will have Le Tout Showbiz tuned in, at a minimum. —Katie Campione, Deadline, 25 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1920, in the meaning defined above

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