An "undertow" is a steady, offshore-directed compensation flow, which occurs below waves near the shore. Physically, nearshore, the wave-induced mass flux between wave crest and trough is onshore …

The meaning of UNDERTOW is the current beneath the surface that sets seaward or along the beach when waves are breaking upon the shore. How to use undertow in a sentence.

Undertow, a strong seaward bottom current returning the water of broken waves back out to sea. There is in fact no such current in a gross sense, for the overall flow of surface water toward the shore in a …

Beachgoers feel like they are being sucked underwater when the wave breaks over their head - this is an undertow. Bathers will tumble around roughly, but this return flow only goes a short distance to …

UNDERTOW definition: 1. a strong current flowing underwater in a different direction to the way the water on the surface…. Learn more.

UNDERTOW definition: the seaward, subsurface flow or draft of water from waves breaking on a beach. See examples of undertow used in a sentence.

Definition of undertow noun in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

An undertow is a strong current of water that is moving below the surface current and in a different direction to it. Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers

Jun 17, 2025 · An undertow is more accurately described as the return flow of water after waves break on the shore, a shallow and relatively weak current that moves seaward near the bottom.

Jan 29, 2025 · An undertow is a subsurface current that moves offshore when waves break near the shore. As waves crash onto the beach, water is pushed up the shore, and gravity then pulls it back …