territorial waters
plural noun
: the waters under the sovereign jurisdiction of a nation or state including both marginal sea and inland waters
Examples of territorial waters in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
There was no immediate comment from Iran, but the UAE Ministry of Defense said earlier that Iran had launched at least four cruise missiles at the country, three of which were intercepted over the country's territorial waters, while the fourth fell in the sea.
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May 4, CBS News, 4 May 2026
Khamenei signals strait will remain shut In his remarks, Khamenei seemed to signal Iran would maintain its control over the waterway, which sits in the territorial waters of Iran and Oman.
—Jon Gambrell, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Ships, under international law, are freely allowed to traverse straits like Hormuz, which don’t fall within one country’s territorial waters.
—Angelica Ang, Fortune, 23 Apr. 2026
Washington sees the Strait of Hormuz as exclusively an international waterway, whereas Tehran sees it as part of it territorial waters.
—Elizabeth Mendenhall, The Conversation, 14 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for territorial waters
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May 4, CBS News, 4 May 2026
Khamenei signals strait will remain shut In his remarks, Khamenei seemed to signal Iran would maintain its control over the waterway, which sits in the territorial waters of Iran and Oman.
—Jon Gambrell, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Ships, under international law, are freely allowed to traverse straits like Hormuz, which don’t fall within one country’s territorial waters.
—Angelica Ang, Fortune, 23 Apr. 2026
Washington sees the Strait of Hormuz as exclusively an international waterway, whereas Tehran sees it as part of it territorial waters.
—Elizabeth Mendenhall, The Conversation, 14 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for territorial waters
Cite this Entry
“Territorial waters.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/territorial%20waters. Accessed 7 May. 2026.
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