Phrase guide

international waters

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

Those parts of the ocean that are not legally recognized as being under the jurisdiction of any national government.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: plural, plural-only

Qualifier: international law

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

the open seas of the world outside the territorial waters of any nation

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: high sea

Antonyms: territorial waters

Broader terms: body of water, water

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

24 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: aigües internacionals — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Chinese Mandarin: 公海 (gōnghǎi) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Dutch: internationale wateren — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Esperanto: internacia maro — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Finnish: kansainväliset vedet — ocean not belonging to any country
  • French: eaux internationales — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Georgian: საერთაშორისო წყლები (saertašoriso c̣q̇lebi) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • German: Internationale Gewässer — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Greek: διεθνή ύδατα (diethní ýdata) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Indonesian: perairan internasional — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Irish: uiscí idirnáisiúnta — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Japanese: 公海 (kōkai) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Korean: 공해 (gonghae) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Norwegian Bokmål: internasjonalt farvann — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Persian: آبهای بینالمللی (âb-hâ-ye beyn-ol-melali) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Polish: wody międzynarodowe — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Portuguese: águas internacionais — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Russian: междунаро́дные во́ды (meždunaródnyje vódy) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Russian: нейтра́льные во́ды (nejtrálʹnyje vódy) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Russian: откры́тое мо́ре (otkrýtoje móre) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Spanish: aguas internacionales — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Ukrainian: міжнаро́дні во́ди (mižnaródni vódy) — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Vietnamese: vùng biển quốc tế — ocean not belonging to any country
  • Welsh: dyfroedd rhyngwladol — ocean not belonging to any country