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longshore drift

American

noun

beach drift.

longshore drift British

noun

the process whereby beach material is gradually shifted laterally as a result of waves meeting the shore at an oblique angle

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of longshore drift

First recorded in 1950–55

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Sand for longshore drift and beaches comes from rivers flowing to the oceans from inland areas.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2017

Most coastal landforms can be attributed to moving sand via longshore drift, longterm rising sea levels, or longterm falling sea levels.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2017

What is the difference between a longshore current and longshore drift?

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

The combined effect of these two processes is sediment transport by longshore drift.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

The combined effects of sediment transport within the surf zone by the longshore current and sediment movement along the beach by swash and backwash is known as longshore drift.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023