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

Among those that have called it quits in recent months are the bicoastal Clearing; LA’s Blum, which also closed its Tokyo outpost; and, in New York, Venus over Manhattan, the decades-old Tilton Gallery, and the nonprofit Canal Projects. —News Desk, Artforum, 12 Nov. 2025

Harrell Mills comes on board as the Director of Internal Affairs, spearheading several projects, including integration between the agency’s bicoastal offices to benefit and better serve the company’s clients. —Denise Petski, Deadline, 11 Nov. 2025

From a bell to an offering dish to an incense holder, each item from the The Ver Series was created while Sheffield explored and reconnected with her creative energy amid decades of managing two stores, adapting her business during and post-pandemic, and the challenges of living a bicoastal life. —Kathy Lee, Footwear News, 10 Oct. 2025

The Chronic marks a canonical beginning to a certain gangsta-rap saga, marred by bicoastal warfare and two larger-than-life martyrs. —Pitchfork, 30 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1920, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for bicoastal

• coastal
• postal
• intercoastal
• intracoastal

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