浅瀬(あさせ)

あさせ
noun
shoal; shallow water; shallows
naturegeography
1. shoal; shallow water; shallows; ford
A place in a body of water where the depth is shallow, such as a sandbar in the sea or a shallow stretch of a river that can be waded across.
浅瀬(あさせ)で遊(あそ)ぶ。
To play in the shallows.
船(ふね)が浅瀬(あさせ)に乗(の)り上(あ)げた。
The boat ran aground on a shoal.
川(かわ)の浅瀬(あさせ)を歩(ある)いて渡(わた)ることができる。
You can walk across the river at the shallows.

Usage

浅瀬(あさせ) can refer to shallow areas in rivers, lakes, or the sea. It appears in the proverb 浅瀬(あさせ)に仇波(あだなみ) (much ado about nothing — literally "waves in the shallows"), describing people who make a fuss over trivial matters.

Common collocations

  • 浅瀬(あさせ)に乗(の)り上(あ)げる (to run aground on a shoal)
  • 浅瀬(あさせ)を渡(わた)る (to wade across the shallows)
  • 浅瀬(あさせ)で遊(あそ)ぶ (to play in the shallows)

Related Words

Related: 水深(すいしん) (water depth)
Compare: 礁(しょう) (reef)
general
Added 2026.3.8 17:49 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01
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