barrier island
noun
: a long broad sandy island lying parallel to a shore that is built up by the action of waves, currents, and winds and that protects the shore from the effects of the ocean
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web For everyone else: This beloved 1947 children’s novel tells the story of Misty the pony, born on the beaches of an uninhabited barrier island. 
Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic, 16 Aug. 2022 For beachgoers, the state also has a oceanfront swimming beach in Seaside Park, the Island Beach State Park on a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and Barnegat Bay. Rachel Chang, Travel + Leisure, 31 May 2022 Township police officers and emergency medical services personnel went to the beach on the barrier island at about 4:09 p.m. Ken Serrano, USA TODAY, 18 May 2022 The famous wild Chincoteague ponies have lived for centuries on Assateague Island, a barrier island on the Atlantic coast, for centuries. Zoe Sottile, CNN, 7 Aug. 2022 Just before the Covid-19 pandemic, Jean Carideo from Chesapeake, Virginia, spent a week on Chincoteague Island, a seven-mile-long barrier island on the northeastern tip of the state’s Eastern Shore. Melissa Hart, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 June 2022 Its crown jewel is arguably found on Assateague Island, a 37-mile-long barrier island that’s packed with wild dunes and the occasional feral horse. The Editors, Outside Online, 12 July 2021 The roughly 16-acre property is located on a barrier island in Manalapan. E.b. Solomont, WSJ, 15 June 2022 The barrier island is a launching point for deep-sea fishing in the gulf, where more than 280 species hang out, but bring your surf-cast gear to haul in redfish straight from the beach. The Editors, Outside Online, 12 July 2021 See More
Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic, 16 Aug. 2022 For beachgoers, the state also has a oceanfront swimming beach in Seaside Park, the Island Beach State Park on a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and Barnegat Bay. Rachel Chang, Travel + Leisure, 31 May 2022 Township police officers and emergency medical services personnel went to the beach on the barrier island at about 4:09 p.m. Ken Serrano, USA TODAY, 18 May 2022 The famous wild Chincoteague ponies have lived for centuries on Assateague Island, a barrier island on the Atlantic coast, for centuries. Zoe Sottile, CNN, 7 Aug. 2022 Just before the Covid-19 pandemic, Jean Carideo from Chesapeake, Virginia, spent a week on Chincoteague Island, a seven-mile-long barrier island on the northeastern tip of the state’s Eastern Shore. Melissa Hart, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 June 2022 Its crown jewel is arguably found on Assateague Island, a 37-mile-long barrier island that’s packed with wild dunes and the occasional feral horse. The Editors, Outside Online, 12 July 2021 The roughly 16-acre property is located on a barrier island in Manalapan. E.b. Solomont, WSJ, 15 June 2022 The barrier island is a launching point for deep-sea fishing in the gulf, where more than 280 species hang out, but bring your surf-cast gear to haul in redfish straight from the beach. The Editors, Outside Online, 12 July 2021 See More Word History
First Known Use
1773, in the meaning defined above
Kids Definition
barrier island
noun
: a long broad sandy island parallel to a shore that is built up by the action of waves, currents, and winds