NEAP TIDE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does neap tide mean? 

• NEAP TIDE (noun)
  The noun NEAP TIDE has 1 sense:

1. a less than average tide occurring at the first and third quarters of the moon

  Familiarity information: NEAP TIDE used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• NEAP TIDE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A less than average tide occurring at the first and third quarters of the moon

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

neap; neap tide

Hypernyms ("neap tide" is a kind of...):

high tide; high water; highwater (the tide when the water is highest)

Antonym:

springtide (a greater than average tide occurring during the new and full moons)

 Context examples 

By tracking 'gators, the ecologists determined that alligators remain in marine habitats for longer periods around spring tides — tides just after a full or new moon, when there's the greatest difference between high and low water. (In contrast, neap tides occur just after the first or third quarters of the moon, when there is the least change between high and low water.)

(Alligators, rulers of the swamps, link marine and freshwater ecosystems, NSF)