Waterway is an important infrastructure supporting coastal ports to play the role of hub portals and also an important object for government departments to provide overall support in planning，construction，maintenance，and other aspects.As China's national economy and foreign trade rapidly develop and the large-scale ships continue to evolve，the waterway construction in China's coastal ports has gradually increased in scale，and the term “coastal waterway” has been widely used.However，the specific definition and the criteria for delimiting the spatial category are not clear，which also brings some problems in industrial management.In this paper，we summarize the normative definitions of coastal waterways in detail and analyze the development process of coastal waterways.Based on laws and regulations，the actual management situation of each region，and other factors，we put forward suggestions on the definition and planning formulation of “coastal waterway”.The suggestions provide a technical reference for deepening understanding and grasping the spatial category of “coastal waterway”，scientifically formulating coastal waterway planning schemes，and supporting government departments in reasonable decision-making and scientific management.