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mid-ocean

1 4.4

The middle of an ocean far from any land

noun
/ˌmɪdˈoʊʃən/

: alta mar

The sailors spent weeks in the mid-ocean without seeing any land.

Examples

A powerful storm developed while the ship was in the mid-ocean.
Scientists study marine life found only in the mid-ocean regions.
The ship was stranded in the mid-ocean for days.
In the mid-ocean, the waters were calm and clear.
The sailors spent weeks in the mid-ocean without seeing any land.
In the mid-ocean, the waters were calm and clear.
A powerful storm developed while the ship was in the mid-ocean.

Synonyms

high sea

vsmid-ocean

Specialized

23 4.6

An area of the sea outside any country's waters

is the central ocean area defined by distance from land rather than legal limits

main

vsmid-ocean

Archaic

2 7.9

The open sea far from land

is the central ocean area far from any land

How Far

mid-ocean

1 4.4

offshore

152 3.7

nearshore

1 3.5

inshore

1 4.2

Surface Forms

mid-ocean singular

mid-oceans plural

Morphology

mid-ocean = ocean (transparent) = mid + ocean

The noun is a direct compound of 'mid' and 'ocean' meaning the middle part of an ocean; the composition is literal and clear. [Postprocessing: moved 'mid' from base_words to prefix]

Etymology

The word mid-ocean names the middle part of the sea, far from any land. It comes from mid- 'middle' and ocean 'sea', which is why mid-ocean means the middle of the sea.