noun
atoll
AT-awl/ˈætɔːl/
A ring-shaped coral island or reef enclosing a lagoon.
The atoll forms a coral ring around a shallow turquoise lagoon.
Etymology
The source word means 'reef,' and the English term was first used for the Maldives. Its English meaning focuses on a coral reef forming a ring around a central lagoon.
In context
not familiar is a remote network of uh some islands out in the pacific once upon a time it had a rat problem now rats weren't native to these island atoll
More examples
- Our boat enters the atoll's lagoon through a gap in the reef.
- Several small villages line the narrow land of the atoll.
- Many Pacific atolls rise only a few feet above sea level.
Forms
atoll · atolls