Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “coast” come from?

Coast comes from Middle English cooste, from Old French coste, from Latin costa meaning rib or side, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European kost-.

coast (English): The edge of the land where it meets an ocean,...

Definitions

  1. The edge of the land where it meets an ocean,...

Ancestry of “coast”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishcoste—
2Old Frenchcostéside
3Latincostātus—
4Latincostaa rib; a side, a wall
5Proto-Indo-Europeankost-—

Words derived from “coast”

  • coastal
  • coastline
  • coaster
  • coasting
  • coastwise
  • coastguard
  • rollercoaster
  • coastland
  • bicoastal
  • coastwide
  • coastward
  • coastguardsman
  • intercoastal
  • noncoastal
  • coastally
  • coastwatcher
  • coastwards
  • coastguardman
  • midcoast
  • upcoast
  • subcoastal
  • downcoast
  • coastless
  • rollercoastering
Every word from Proto-Indo-European kost- →