noun / adjective
saline
SAY-leen/ˈseɪliːn/
Containing dissolved salt.
A white salt crust rims the shallow pool of saline water.
Etymology
Saline probably comes from a word for a salt cellar or salt pits. Its earlier meaning “made of salt” broadened to “pertaining to salt,” covering salt-containing water.
In context
they can exclude salt from entering their tissues or they can take the salt in and squirt it back out all kind of fantastic adaptations to living in saline conditions
More examples
- The nurse rinses the wound with sterile saline.
- The lake becomes more saline as water evaporates.
- These plants tolerate saline soil near the coast.
Forms
saline
salinity noun — The amount of dissolved salt present.
Similar words
- salty
- Often emphasizes a noticeable salt taste rather than chemical composition.
- brackish
- Describes water saltier than freshwater but less salty than seawater.