mediterranean sea
UK /ˌmɛ.dɪ.təˈɹeɪ.nɪ.ən ˈsiː/ · US /ˌmɛ.də.təˈɹeɪ.ni.ən ˈsi/ noun, proper noun
Forms mediterranean seas the Mediterranean Sea
- noun (oceanography) A mostly enclosed sea that has limited exchange of deep water with outer oceans, and where the water circulation is dominated by salinity and temperature differences rather than winds.
- proper noun The sea between Europe and Africa.
Synonyms
Middle Ocean Terrene Sea Great Sea Hinder Sea Sea of the Philistines The Sea Wendel Sea Western Sea Mediterranean
Etymology
The word mediterranean is from Latin mediterrāneus (“inland, remote from the coast”) + English -an (suffix forming adjectives with the sense ‘of or pertaining to’). Mediterrāneus is derived from medius (“middle”) + terra (“dry land, ground”), modelled after Ancient Greek μεσόγαιος (mesógaios, “located in the midst of land”). The English word is cognate with Middle French méditerranéen (modern French méditerranéen), Italian mediterraneo, Spanish mediterráneo.
Calque of Late Latin Mare Mediterraneum.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “mediterranean sea”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details