# coaster

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈkəʊ̯s.tə/ · frequency rank #11,357

## Definitions
1. A person who originates from or inhabits a coastal area.
2. A sailor (especially the master or pilot of a vessel) who travels only in coastal waters.
3. A merchant vessel that stays in coastal waters, especially one that travels between ports of the same country.
4. Ellipsis of coaster trout (“the brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) in Lake Superior and Maine”).
5. A cow from the coastal part of Texas.
6. A prostitute, especially one of European descent, plying her trade in Chinese port towns.

## Etymology
From coast (“edge of the land where it meets an ocean, sea, gulf, bay, or large lake”) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns). Coast is derived from Middle English coste (“rib; side of the body, flank; side of a building; face of a solid figure; coast, shore; bay, gulf; sea; concavity, hollow; boundary, limit; land; country; district, province, region; locality, place; division of the heavens; compass direction; direction; location with reference to direction, side”) [and other forms], from Old French coste (“rib; side of an object; coast”) (modern French côte (“rib; coast; hill, slope”)), from Latin costa (“rib; side, wall”).

## Easily confused with
- **coated** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/coaster-vs-coated)
- **crater** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/coaster-vs-crater)
- **coasts** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/coaster-vs-coasts)
- **Coates** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/coaster-vs-coates)
- **cotter** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/coaster-vs-cotter)
- **coulter** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/coaster-vs-coulter)
- **coast** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/coast-vs-coaster)
- **caste** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caste-vs-coaster)
- **cater** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cater-vs-coaster)
- **Carter** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/carter-vs-coaster)
- **Casper** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/casper-vs-coaster)
- **castor** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/castor-vs-coaster)
- **chaser** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/chaser-vs-coaster)
- **caster** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/caster-vs-coaster)
- **chaste** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/chaste-vs-coaster)
- **canter** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/canter-vs-coaster)
- **chapter** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/chapter-vs-coaster)
- **charter** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/charter-vs-coaster)
- **coastal** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/coastal-vs-coaster)
- **cluster** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cluster-vs-coaster)

## Common misspellings (10)
`caoster`, `ccoaster`, `coasetr`, `coasster`, `coasterr`, `coastre`, `coastter`, `coatser`, `cosater`, `ocaster`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/coaster