marine

marine — adjective

1. concerning the ocean, the animals and plants found in it, and the ships used for

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

concerning the ocean, the animals and plants found in it, and the ships used for travel and trade across its waters.

Example

Marine biologists study the plants and animals that live in the ocean.

collocation: marine biologist

Pollution from factories is a growing danger to marine ecosystems worldwide.

collocation: marine ecosystem

Common collocations
  • marine life
  • marine biology
  • marine environment
  • marine ecosystem
  • marine animal
  • marine species
  • marine habitat
  • marine reserve
  • marine cargo
  • marine insurance
  • marine engineering
  • marine biology
Synonyms
  • oceanic

    more restricted to ocean environments; less common in everyday speech

  • maritime

    focuses on human activities at sea (trade, law, navigation) rather than biology

  • nautical

    relates specifically to ships, sailing, and navigation rather than sea life

  • naval

    refers specifically to a country's military navy, not general sea life

Antonyms
  • terrestrial

    relating to land rather than the sea

  • freshwater

    relating to rivers and lakes rather than the sea

Grammar Patterns

marine + noun

Usage Note

Frequently used as a modifier before nouns to show that something belongs to or happens in the sea (marine habitat, marine research) or involves sea transport (marine insurance, marine engineering).

Common Mistakes

Marine animals like eagles and sparrows.
Marine animals like whales, seals, and sea turtles.
'Marine' describes things that live in or relate to the sea, not to land or air.

marine — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

These four words all relate to the sea but differ in scope and use. Marine is the broadest term, covering sea life (marine biology), sea transport (marine cargo), and anything belonging to the ocean. Maritime focuses on human activities at sea, especially trade and law (maritime law, maritime industry), and rarely refers to plants or animals. Oceanic is more restricted to the open ocean itself (oceanic climate, oceanic trench) and is less common in everyday speech. Nautical relates specifically to ships, sailing, and navigation (nautical mile, nautical chart) — you would not use it to describe sea creatures. Naval is exclusively about a country's military navy (naval base, naval officer) and never about ships in general or sea life. For example, a marine biologist studies sea life; a maritime lawyer handles shipping disputes; a nautical map helps sailors navigate; and a naval commander leads warships.

maritime ↗oceanicnautical ↗naval ↗

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchEnglish

Marine comes from the Latin word marinus, meaning 'of the sea', which itself comes from mare ('sea'). It entered English through Old French marin in the 14th century, first as an adjective describing things related to the sea, and later as a noun referring to a soldier serving on ships. The modern military meaning developed in the 17th century with the creation of specialised sea-soldier units.