Coast Guard

American

noun

U.S. Military. a military service under the Department of Transportation, which in peacetime enforces maritime laws, saves lives and property at sea, and maintains aids to navigation, and which in wartime may be placed under the Navy Department to augment the navy.
(lowercase) any similar organization for aiding navigation, preventing smuggling, etc.
Also called coastguardsman. (lowercase) a member of any such organization.

Etymology

Origin of Coast Guard

First recorded in 1825–35

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.

DHS pulled into its structure several preexisting agencies, such as the Coast Guard, which continued to perform their traditional missions.

From Salon

Coast Guard about the incident.

From The Wall Street Journal

Meanwhile, Sweden's coast guard has opened an investigation into a fuel spill in the port of Malmo, where two oil tankers are docked, as well as the Charles de Gaulle.

From BBC

A US-based man identified by Cuba as one of those killed by its coast guard in a shootout had often spoken of wanting to liberate the communist island, a political ally told AFP on Thursday.

From Barron's

The Coast Guard swimmer who jumped time and again from a chopper into the raging waters of the July 2025 Texas flood, saving 165 lives, was also honored.

From The Wall Street Journal

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