Groynes

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Barrier formations erected parallel to shorelines to guard against erosion
2. Structures built out from a beach into the water to reduce erosion caused by waves and currents
3. Man-made constructions extending from the shoreline into the sea designed to slow the movement of sand and protect the coast

Etymology: "Groynes" is the plural of "groyne," a word for the low wooden or stone barriers built out from a beach into the sea to trap sand and slow erosion. The surprising part is where the name came from: a pig's snout. The English word goes back to Middle English "groyn," meaning "snout," which passed in from Old French "groign." Behind that lies Late Latin "grunium," and ultimately the Latin verb "grunnire," meaning "to grunt like a pig." The link is one of shape and sound. A projecting snout and a long barrier running out from the shore share the same basic idea: something that juts forward from a larger body. The coastal sense developed from that physical resemblance, so a sea defence built to stick out from the land was named after the nose of an animal that grunts.

Synonyms: revetments, breakwaters