a discoloration of sea water caused by an explosive growth in phytoplankton density: sometimes toxic to fish life and, through accumulation in shellfish, to humans
red tide in American English
US
a reddish discoloration of sea waters, caused by large numbers of red dinoflagellates (esp. genera Gymnodinium and Gonyaulax) that kill fish and other organisms by releasing poisonous products
Examples of 'red tide' in a sentence
red tide
We had an important meeting scheduled for today, he and I. "The red tide of anger was mounting again.