Coast, v. t. 1.
To draw near to; to approach; to keep near, or by the side
of. [Obs.] Hakluyt.
2. To sail by or near; to follow the
coast line of.
Nearchus, . . . not knowing the compass, was fain
to coast that shore.
Sir T. Browne.
3. To conduct along a coast or river
bank. [Obs.]
The Indians . . . coasted me along the
river.
Hakluyt.
Coast (?), v. i. [imp. & p.
p. Coasted; p. pr. & vb. n.
Coasting.] [OE. costien, costeien,
costen, OF. costier, costoier, F.
côtoyer, fr. Of. coste coast, F.
côte. See Coast, n.]
1. To draw or keep near; to approach.
[Obs.]
Anon she hears them chant it lustily,
And all in haste she coasteth to the cry.
Shak.
2. To sail by or near the
shore.
The ancients coasted only in their
navigation.
Arbuthnot.
3. To sail from port to port in the same
country.
4. [Cf. OF. coste, F.
côte, hill, hillside.] To slide down hill; to
slide on a sled, upon snow or ice. [Local, U. S.]
Coast (?), n. [OF. coste, F.
côte, rib, hill, shore, coast, L. costa rib,
side. Cf. Accost, v. t., Cutlet.]
1. The side of a thing. [Obs.] Sir
I. Newton.
2. The exterior line, limit, or border of
a country; frontier border. [Obs.]
From the river, the river Euphrates, even to the
uttermost sea, shall your coast be.
Deut. xi. 24.
3. The seashore, or land near
it.
He sees in English ships the Holland
coast.
Dryden.
We the Arabian coast do know
At distance, when the species blow.
Waller.
The coast is clear, the danger is over;
no enemy in sight. Dryden. Fig.: There are no
obstacles. "Seeing that the coast was clear, Zelmane
dismissed Musidorus." Sir P. Sidney. -- Coast
guard. (a) A body of men originally
employed along the coast to prevent smuggling; now, under the
control of the admiralty, drilled as a naval reserve. [Eng.]
(b) The force employed in life-saving
stations along the seacoast. [U. S.] -- Coast
rat (Zoöl.), a South African mammal
(Bathyergus suillus), about the size of a rabbit,
remarkable for its extensive burrows; -- called also sand
mole. -- Coast waiter, a
customhouse officer who superintends the landing or shipping of
goods for the coast trade. [Eng.]