ocean

 Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++朗文当代英语 5++LDOCE 5++朗文 5++

Related topics: Geography, Oceanography

o·cean /ˈəʊʃən $ ˈoʊ-/ ●●● S3 W2 noun  1  the ocean especially American EnglishDNSG the great mass of salt water that covers most of the Earth’s surface 海洋，大海 SYN the sea She stood on the beach, gazing at the ocean. 她站在海滩上，凝视着大海。 I like to swim in the ocean when it’s warm enough. 海水足够暖的时候，我喜欢在海里游泳。2  [countable]SGHEO one of the very large areas of sea on the Earth’s surface …洋 the Pacific Ocean 太平洋3  oceans of something informalLOT/LARGE NUMBER OR AMOUNT a lot of something, especially a liquid 大量[许多]某物〔尤指液体〕 oceans of champagne 大量的香槟 → a drop in the ocean at drop2(8)n GRAMMAR: Patterns with oceanin the ocean• You use in the ocean to talk about things that happen in the water: We swam in the ocean.There are thousands of species of fish in the ocean. on the ocean• You use on the ocean to talk about things that happen on the surface of the water: He dreamed of buying a yacht and sailing on the ocean.by the ocean• You use by the ocean to talk about the area near the ocean: I’d love to live by the ocean.

Examples from the Corpus

ocean• It is also worth thinking about the possibility that rearrangements of the continents and oceans would themselves have considerable climatic effects.• Amid the barren ocean floor swarmed legions of bizarre, new animals.• These shells, which came from the great oceans, impart sacred knowledge.• You think I let her scare me about that ocean?• Everything was hygienically sluiced away by the ocean.• About 100 tons of contaminated sediments still lie on the ocean floor.• Obviously if we close up the ocean again, the resemblances would not be so startling.• You could get seasick at the top watching the clouds scudding across a full moon in a vast ocean of space.Origin ocean (1200-1300) Latin oceanus, from Greek Okeanos name of a river believed to flow around the world

o·cean noun →n GRAMMAR1LDOCE OnlineChineseSyllable  

the salt Corpus mass water great of

ocean
o‧cean S3 W2 /ˈəʊʃən $ ˈoʊ-/ noun1. the ocean especially American English the great mass of salt water that covers most of the Earth’s surface
   SYN  the sea:
    She stood on the beach, gazing at the ocean.
    I like to swim in the ocean when it’s warm enough.
2. [countable] one of the very large areas of sea on the Earth’s surface:
    the Pacific Ocean
3. oceans of something informal a lot of something, especially a liquid:
    oceans of champagne
⇨ a drop in the ocean at drop²(8)

🔑 oceanBrE /ˈəʊʃn/ 🔊NAmE /ˈoʊʃn/ 🔊 noun🔑

(usually the ocean) [singular] (especially NAmE) the mass of salt water that covers most of the earth's surface 大海；海洋◆the depths of the ocean海洋的深处◆People were swimming in the ocean despite the hurricane warning. 尽管有飓风警报，人们仍然在大海里游泳。🔊🔊◆The plane hit the ocean several miles offshore. 飞机在距离海岸数英里处坠入大海。🔊🔊◆Our beach house is just a couple of miles from the ocean. 我家滨海的房子离大海只有几英里。🔊🔊◆an ocean liner远洋客轮◆Ocean levels are rising. 海平面正在上升。🔊🔊🔑 (usually Ocean) [countable] one of the five large areas that the ocean is divided into （五大洋之一的）洋◆the Antarctic/Arctic/Atlantic/Indian/Pacific Ocean 南极海；北冰洋；大西洋；印度洋；太平洋

• In BrE, the usual word for the mass of salt water that covers most of the earth's surface is the sea. In NAmE, the usual word is the ocean. 在英式英语中，覆盖地球表面大部分地区的大片海水通常用 sea 表示。美式英语则通常用 ocean：◆A swimmer drowned in the sea/ocean this morning. 今天早上一名游泳者在海里淹死了。
• The names of particular areas of seas, however, are fixed. 然而，特定的海洋名称用 sea 或 ocean 是固定的：◆the Mediterranean Sea 地中海◆the Atlantic Ocean 大西洋
• Sea/ocean are also used if you go to the coast on holiday/vacation. 到海滨度假亦可用 sea/ocean：◆We're spending a week by the sea/at the ocean in June. 我们六月份要在海滨度假一个星期。In NAmE it is also common to say 美式英语亦常说：◆We're going to the beach for vacation. 我们要去海滨度假。

 ➡ note at coast●an ocean of sth (also oceans of sth) (informal) a large amount of sth 众多；大量●a ˌdrop in the ˈocean(BrE) (NAmE a ˌdrop in the ˈbucket) an amount of sth that is too small or unimportant to make any real difference to a situation 沧海一粟；九牛一毛