To investigate the processes governing the distribution of elements in the tidal flat, thirty-eight sediment samples collected from the Saemangeum tidal flat of the Korean west coast were analyzed for their contents of major (Al, Fe, Mg, Ca, Na, K, Ti) and trace (P, Mn, Ba, Sr, V, Cr, Co, Cu, Ni, Zn, Pb) elements. Most elements showed generally lower contents compared to data published for other tidal flats of Korea, and the effect of anthropogenic input could not be recognized in the sediments. The relative abundance and distribution of most of the elements varied significantly with the grain size of sediments. High contents of Al, Fe, Mg, Ti, P, Mn, V, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni and Zn were found in the finer sediments in the upper tidal flat of the study area, suggesting that tidal sedimentation processes play an important role in controlling the distribution of these elements. However, sediment grain size does not impose any significant effect on the abundance and distribution of Ca, Na, K, Ba, Sr and Pb. It appears that the clastic mineralogy in the coarse-grained fractions is the dominant factor determining the distribution of these elements in the study area.