coaster
Syllables: coast·erUK/ˈkəʊ̯s.tə/US/ˈkoʊ̯s.tɚ/
coaster noun: a person who originates from or inhabits a coastal area. Also the ellipsis of coaster trout.
Noun (1)
coaster (plural coasters)
- A person who originates from or inhabits a coastal area.
- People said, "Eldridge. Of course, he's an old Coaster," and Eldridge, the middle-aged shipping agent, at the beginning of every meal would say, "Chop, as we call it on the Coast," or handing a plate of onions, "Violets, we say on the Coast."1936, Graham Greene, “The Cargo Ship”, in Journey Without Maps, 1st US edition, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Doran & Company, →OCLC, part 1, page 27
- A sailor (especially the master or pilot of a vessel) who travels only in coastal waters.
- Thus, with ſhort Plummets Heav'ns deep will we ſound, / That vaſt Abyſs where humane Wit is drown'd! / In our ſmall Skiff we muſt not launce too far; / We here but Coaſters, not Diſcov'rers are.1669 June (first performance), John Dryden, Tyrannick Love, or, The Royal Martyr. […], London: […] H[enry] Herringman, […], published 1670, →OCLC, Act IV, scene i, page 43
- If you question a seaman on the subject, whether mere coaster or circumnavigator, he will tell you that in a snow-storm, because of its constant eddyings and gyrations, frequent trimming of sails is more necessary than in any other gale, and that to steer a straight and steady course under such...1881 April, “Snow Storm Gales”, in Symons’s Monthly Meteorological Magazine, volume XVI, number CLXXXIII, London: Edward Stanford, […], →OCLC, page 59
- A merchant vessel that stays in coastal waters, especially one that travels between ports of the same country.
- His father was skipper of a small coaster, from Bristol, and dying, left him, when quite young, to the care of his mother, by whose exertions he received a common-school education, passing his winters in school and his summers in the coasting trade, until his seventeenth year, when he left home to...1840, R[ichard] H[enry] D[ana], Jr., chapter XXIII, in Two Years before the Mast. […] (Harper’s Family Library; no. CVI), New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers […], →OCLC, page 245
- The single line to Exmouth Docks curves round the back of the goods yard. […] The docks can handle vessels of up to 700 tons; on the day of my visit an English coaster was discharging coal and a Dutch coaster arrived with a cargo of wood pulp from Sweden.1960 May, R. C. Riley, “The Coastal Branches of South-East Devon: Part One”, in Trains Illustrated, London: Ian Allan Publishing, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 298
- Synonyms:
- coasting vessel
- A cow from the coastal part of Texas.
- The ranch's rangy coasters, the only saleable cattle they then held, could not compete with cattle from a growing number of Midwest farmer-feeders or with competitors stocking the northern ranges.2020, Michael M. Miller, XIT: A Story of Land, Cattle, and Capital in Texas and Montana, page 119
- But our market required a better quality than coasters and Mexican cattle, and we turned back up the country.2021, Ernest Haycox, Karl May, Zane Grey, 50 Westerns
- A prostitute, especially one of European descent, plying her trade in Chinese port towns.
- Don't tell me you've never heard of Shanghai Lily! Everybody in China knows her. She is a notorious coaster.1932, Jules Furthman, Shanghai Express
- I think you can say this much, that from these traces of callus I'd venture she was once a ballet dancer—and later got her living otherwise—as a coaster perhaps.1932, [Francis] Van Wyck Mason, The Branded Spy Murders, New York, N.Y.: Grosset & Dunlap, →OCLC, page 65
Noun (2)
coaster (plural coasters)
- An itinerant person who shirks work but still seeks food and lodging; a loafer, a sundowner.
- A person who uses a sled or toboggan to slide down a slope covered with ice or snow; a sledder, a tobogganist.
- It was cold but still, and Polly trotted down the smooth, snow-covered mall, humming to herself, and trying not to feel homesick. The coasters were at it with all their might, and she watched them, till her longing to join the fun grew irresistible.1869–1870, Louisa M[ay] Alcott, “Polly’s Troubles”, in An Old-Fashioned Girl, Boston, Mass.: Roberts Brothers, published 1870, →OCLC, page 42
- One who succeeds while making only a minimal effort.
- In Prashar's opinion, there are two types of manager: "coasters, who coast along in a job, and sprinters, who have a challenge, deal with it and then move on."2019, Santiago Iñiguez, In an Ideal Business, page 155
- A small stand or tray, sometimes with wheels, used to pass something such as a decanter or wine bottle around a tabletop.
- A small, flat or tray-like object on which a bottle, cup, glass, mug, etc., is placed to protect a table surface from drink spills, heat, or water condensation.
- A useless compact disc or DVD, such as one that was burned incorrectly or has become corrupted.
- A sled or toboggan.
- A minibus; small bus (especially Toyota Coaster or in general resembling such regardless of brand name)
- coaster bus
- "O, siya. Basta bilisan mo na riyan." PAKIRAMDAM ni Jhunnica ay inaalat siya nang araw na iyon. Naiwan siya ng service coaster bus na naghahatid at sumusundo sa kanilang mga empleyado ng Stallion Riding Club. Isang exclusive club iyon ng mayayamang mahilig sa kabayo mula sa iba't ibang panig ng...2022 May 18, Sonia Francesca, Stallion Series 2: Eneru Villlasis, Precious Pages Corporation, →ISBN
Also used as
coaster is also the ellipsis of coaster trout.
coaster is also the ellipsis of rollercoaster.
coaster meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu
coaster in Hindi
- कोस्टर
coaster in Tamil
- கோஸ்டர், கோஸ்ட்டர்
coaster in Marathi
- कोस्टर
coaster in Urdu
- کوسٹر, کواسٹر
More languagesFewer languages
- coaster in Bengali
- কোস্টার
- coaster in Telugu
- కోస్టర్
- coaster in Malayalam
- കോസ്റ്റർ, കോസ്റ്റേർ, കോസ്റ്റാർ
- coaster in Kannada
- ಕೋಸ್ಟರ್
- coaster in Punjabi
- ਕੋਸਟਰ
- coaster in Gujarati
- કોસ્ટર, કોસ્ટાર
- coaster in Odia
- କୋଷ୍ଟର୍
- coaster in Nepali
- कोस्टर, कोस्टार
- coaster in Indonesian
- takatan, takatan bir, takatan minum, takatan minuman
- coaster in Vietnamese
- giấy lót li, lót cốc
Examples of coaster in a sentence
- Gently again, he raised his hand to tap on the smooth white panels of the coaster’s door, but once more his interview with Ruby Braunfeld was postponed.1933, [Francis] Van Wyck Mason, The Shanghai Bund Murders, New York, N.Y.: Grosset & Dunlap, →OCLC, page 51:
- Lily has become a "coaster", a vamp who travels along the China coast looking for men to victimize, and Doc has thrown himself into his work as a British medical officer.1993, Gina Marchetti, “The Threat of Captivity: The Bitter Tea of General Yen and Shanghai Express”, in Romance and the “Yellow Peril”...
- If you stay in China, I fear you will end up a coaster.2000, Charles Busch, Shanghai Moon: A Comic Melodrama, New York, N.Y.; London: Samuel French, →ISBN:
- Naiwan siya ng service coaster bus na naghahatid at sumusundo sa kanilang mga empleyado ng Stallion Riding Club.2022 May 18, Sonia Francesca, Stallion Series 2: Eneru Villlasis, Precious Pages Corporation, →ISBN:
Synonyms of coaster
Forms of coaster
| plural | coasters |
|---|
Origin of coaster
From coast (“edge of the land where it meets an ocean, sea, gulf, bay, or large lake”) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns). Coast is derived from Middle English coste (“rib; side of the body, flank; side of a building; face of a solid figure; coast, shore; bay, gulf; sea; concavity, hollow; boundary, limit; land; country; district, province, region; locality, place; division of the heavens; compass direction; direction; location with reference to direction, side”) [and other forms], from Old French coste (“rib; side of an object; coast”) (modern French côte (“rib; coast; hill, slope”)), from Latin costa (“rib; side, wall”).
From coast (“to glide along without adding energy; to make a minimal effort; to slide downhill (especially, to slide on a sled upon snow or ice)”) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns). Coast is derived from Middle English costeien (“to travel along a border or coast; to go alongside (something), skirt; to accompany, follow; to travel across, traverse; to be adjacent to, to border;”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman [Term?], Old French costoier (“to be at the side of”) [and other forms] (modern French côtoyer (“to pass alongside; (figuratively) to rub shoulders”)), from Latin costicāre, from costa (“rib; side, wall”); see further at etymology 1. etymology 2 sense 2.1 (“small stand or tray”) is from the fact that the object and the decanter or wine bottle on it “coast” or travel around a tabletop from person to person. etymology 2 sense 2.2.2 (“useless compact disc or DVD”) refers to the fact that the object is only useful as a drink coaster. etymology 2 sense 2.5 (“minibus”) is a genericized trademark from Toyota Coaster. Compare Spanish coaster / cúster.
Words formed from coaster
Phrases with coaster
Words that rhyme with coaster
Questions about coaster
- What does coaster mean?
- Coaster means a person who originates from or inhabits a coastal area.
- What is coaster in Hindi?
- Coaster in Hindi is कोस्टर. See Coaster meaning in Hindi.
- How do you use coaster in a sentence?
- Gently again, he raised his hand to tap on the smooth white panels of the coaster’s door, but once more his interview with Ruby Braunfeld was postponed.
- What part of speech is coaster?
- Coaster is a noun.
- How do you pronounce coaster?
- Coaster is pronounced /ˈkəʊ̯s.tə/ (UK).
- What is the plural of coaster?
- The plural of coaster is coasters.
Words near coaster in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: coaster (page history and authors); coaster (Hindi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Tamil, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Urdu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Bengali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Telugu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Malayalam, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Kannada, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); coaster (Nepali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-coaster.ogg.
Cite this entry: “coaster.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/coaster. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.