Beach / Shore / Coast / Seaside
These four words are all related to the edge of the sea, but each one has its own use and meaning:
• Shore is the most general word for the edge of the land next to a sea or river.
• Coast refers to a wide area of land by the sea, often seen on maps or in weather reports.
• Beach is part of the shore that has sand or pebbles.
• Seaside means a place that includes both the coast and beach, usually where people go for holidays.
In Arabic:
• شَاطِئ (ج: شَوَاطِئ) — Beach, seaside, or shore
• سَاحِل (ج: سَوَاحِل) — Coast or shore
All of these can refer to edges of water, but each one has a specific use depending on the context.
Examples:
نَقْضِي إِجَازَتَنَا هٰذَا العَامِ عَلَى الشَّاطِئِ.
We are spending our holiday this year at the beach.
تَفَضَّلُوا إِلَى الشَّاطِئِ بَعْدَ الظُّهْرِ اليَوْمَ.
Let’s go to the beach this afternoon!
شَاهَدُوا السَّفِينَةَ تَقْتَرِبُ مِنَ السَّاحِلِ.
They saw the ship approaching the shore.
سَتَرْتَفِعُ دَرَجَاتُ الحَرَارَةِ فِي مِنْطَقَةِ السَّاحِلِ فِي نِهَايَةِ الأُسْبُوعِ.
Temperatures will rise on the coast by the weekend.
أُفَضِّلُ العَيْشَ بِالقُرْبِ مِنَ السَّاحِلِ.
I prefer living near the coast.