barrier island

American

noun

a broadened barrier beach, habitable in places, that provides a measure of protection for the mainland, as during hurricanes and tidal waves.

barrier island Scientific

/ băr′ē-ər /

A long, narrow sand island that is parallel to the mainland and serves to protect the coast from erosion. Barrier islands typically have dunes along the exposed outer side, zones of vegetation in the interior, and swampy areas along the inner lagoon.

barrier island Cultural

Any low sandy island that is parallel to the mainland and protects it from storms. (See Cape Hatteras.)

Discover More

Barrier islands normally change location every ten to thirty years, a fact that makes coastline management a major problem in environmental policy.

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.

For example, non-native feral hogs are now major predators of loggerhead sea turtle eggs along the Georgia coast, USA, while coyotes in eastern North America are expanding onto coastal barrier islands, altering those ecosystems.

From Science Daily

Especially on the barrier islands of Miami Beach, vacationing costs a lot.

From The Wall Street Journal

Officials for St. Paul’s Fire District, which covers Charleston County, said Edisto Island, the barrier island where the home is located, has a limited water supply, which made fighting the fire more difficult.

From The Wall Street Journal

Local officials issued evacuation orders for parts of the Outer Banks, a chain of barrier islands known for their beaches and charming towns that are popular with tourists.

From The Wall Street Journal

Located on a barrier island between Lake Worth Lagoon and the Atlantic Ocean in South Florida, the club’s landscaping could place it anywhere in the United States.

From Salon

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