oceanic

adjective

oce·​an·​ic ˌō-shē-ˈa-nik How to pronounce oceanic (audio)
1
a
: of or relating to the ocean
b
: occurring in or frequenting the ocean and especially the open sea as distinguished from littoral or neritic waters
2
: vast, great
3
Oceanic linguistics : relating to, belonging to, or characterizing a subfamily of the Austronesian family of languages that is spoken in Polynesia and most of the islands of Melanesia and Micronesia

Examples of oceanic in a Sentence

the theory that ancient mariners took advantage of oceanic currents to roam the seas on primitive rafts during his solo crossing of the Atlantic he managed to avoid the fierce oceanic storms that rage in those tropical latitudes
Recent Examples on the Web
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During the late Eocene and early Oligocene epochs, sea levels dropped as glaciers formed in Antarctica, narrowing the oceanic gap between continents. Scott Travers, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2025 Everywhere, the planet showed signs of heat swoon last year, with record high levels of water vapor, methane, and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere; record low expanses of sea ice around Antarctica; and record oceanic temperatures in the North Atlantic, Indian, and western Pacific Oceans. Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 10 Jan. 2025 Some researchers are investigating whether alkaline materials can be added to the ocean to suck up carbon, while others are exploring methods such as cloud seeding to prevent water vapor from reaching the stratosphere or oceanic fertilizer dumping to trigger phytoplankton blooms. Christie Wilcox, science.org, 27 Dec. 2024 Their design motifs are dreamy and child-like, weaving an under-the-sea element that manifests in an oceanic color palette, along with characters of squid, whales, octopi—and kids! airmail.news, 7 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for oceanic 

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin Ōceanicus, from Ōceanus "the sea flowing around the land mass of the known world, ocean" + -icus -ic entry 1

First Known Use

1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of oceanic was in 1656

Dictionary Entries Near oceanic

Cite this Entry

“Oceanic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oceanic. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.

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