oceanography

noun

ocean·​og·​ra·​phy ˌō-shə-ˈnä-grə-fē 

: a science that deals with the oceans and includes the delimitation of their extent and depth, the physics and chemistry of their waters, marine biology, and the exploitation of their resources

oceanographer

ˌō-shə-ˈnä-grə-fər 

noun

oceanographic

ˌō-shə-nə-ˈgra-fik 

adjective

or less commonly oceanographical

ˌō-shə-nə-ˈgra-fi-kəl 

oceanographically

ˌō-shə-nə-ˈgra-fi-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Examples of oceanography in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Hal Whitehead would ask about oceanography, about changes in currents. —Ross Andersen, The Atlantic, 24 Feb. 2024

So far, this winter the sea level is about four inches higher and growing, said Dan Rudnick, a professor of physical oceanography at Scripps. —Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 25 Jan. 2024

That way of doing oceanography, said Lawrence-Slavas, doesn’t transition very well between groups. —Alka Tripathy-Lang, Ars Technica, 21 June 2023

Craig Smith, a professor emeritus of oceanography at the University of Hawaii who has dedicated much of his life to studying whale falls, noted that this finding is particularly groundbreaking in his field. —Rosanna Xia, Los Angeles Times, 5 Jan. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from German Ozeanographie, Oceanographie from Ozean, Ocean ocean + -o- -o- + -graphie -graphy (after Geographie geography, Aërographie "meteorology")

Note: The German word was apparently introduced by the German seaman and academic Eduard Bobrik (1802-70) in Handbuch der praktischen Seefahrtskunde, Band 1 (Zürich/Hamburg, 1846), p. 79 ff.

First Known Use

1859, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

oceanography

noun

ocean·​og·​ra·​phy ˌō-shə-ˈnäg-rə-fē 

: a science that deals with the ocean

oceanographer

ˌō-shə-ˈnäg-rə-fər 

noun

oceanographic

-nə-ˈgraf-ik 

adjective

oceanographically

-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb