Definition

Noun: A strong, narrow current of water that flows rapidly away from the shore, back out to sea, through or along a break in a sandbar. It is formed by water from waves piling up near the coastline and then finding a path back out to deeper water. This current can be dangerous to swimmers.

Usage

This term is used specifically to describe a hazardous coastal oceanographic feature. It is a regional term, most commonly used along the northeastern coast of the United States. - Swimmers were warned about the powerful sea puss near the jetty. - The lifeguard identified the sea puss by the channel of choppy, discolored water moving seaward.

Advanced Usage

• The term "sea puss" is a regional variant, synonymous with the more universally understood term "rip current" or "rip tide."
• It is often personified in local lore as a force that can "grab" or "pull" swimmers out to sea.

Variants and Related Words

• Rip current (n): The standard technical term for this phenomenon.
• Riptide (n): A common, though technically less accurate, synonym.
• Undertow (n): A related but distinct phenomenon involving a general subsurface return of water, not a concentrated surface current.

Synonyms

• Rip current
• Riptide
• Runback

Related Phrases/Idioms

• "Caught in a sea puss": To be trapped in the pull of a rip current.
  • The surfer was caught in a sea puss but knew to swim parallel to the shore to escape it.

Noun

1. the seaward undercurrent created after waves have broken on the shore