: a passage for surplus water to run over or around an obstruction (such as a dam)
Examples of spillway in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Photos show the cub’s mad dash up and down the spillway — and into a corner.
—
Brooke Baitinger, Idaho Statesman, 23 Apr. 2024
The main spillway continues to perform well and operate as designed, DWR said, ever since a 2017 incident when one of the dam’s two spillways was heavily damaged and there were fears of major flooding.
—David Caraccio, Sacramento Bee, 1 Feb. 2024
Advertisement Had there been no cleanout, the sediment would’ve been so high by now, the dam’s release valves would’ve clogged, and officials would’ve been helpless as floodwaters rushed over the spillway, resulting in an uncontrolled flow downstream along the Arroyo Seco.
—Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2024
Stagnant water sits below the dry spillway of Falcon Dam in Starr County on Aug. 18, 2022.Photograph: Michael Gonzalez/The Texas Tribune
This story originally appeared on Inside Climate News and is part of the Climate Desk collaboration.
—Dylan Baddour, WIRED, 27 Jan. 2024
Then, the remaining dam was notched on alternating sides, with each notch functioning as a temporary spillway to drain the reservoir while encouraging sediment from the upstream delta to move closer to the dam.
—Alka Tripathy-Lang, Ars Technica, 11 Jan. 2024
Had that not been done between 2018 and 2021, and regular excavations conducted since, last week’s storm would have forced officials to release a full-to-the-brim reservoir through the dam’s spillway, Pestrella said.
—Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2024
In 1914, it was reinforced with concrete poured over its stone work, including the spillway.
—Mark Pazniokas, Hartford Courant, 11 Jan. 2024
The California Department of Water Resources on Wednesday began releasing water from Oroville Dam’s main spillway.
—David Caraccio, Sacramento Bee, 1 Feb. 2024
Brooke Baitinger, Idaho Statesman, 23 Apr. 2024
The main spillway continues to perform well and operate as designed, DWR said, ever since a 2017 incident when one of the dam’s two spillways was heavily damaged and there were fears of major flooding.
—David Caraccio, Sacramento Bee, 1 Feb. 2024
Advertisement Had there been no cleanout, the sediment would’ve been so high by now, the dam’s release valves would’ve clogged, and officials would’ve been helpless as floodwaters rushed over the spillway, resulting in an uncontrolled flow downstream along the Arroyo Seco.
—Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2024
Stagnant water sits below the dry spillway of Falcon Dam in Starr County on Aug. 18, 2022.Photograph: Michael Gonzalez/The Texas Tribune
This story originally appeared on Inside Climate News and is part of the Climate Desk collaboration.
—Dylan Baddour, WIRED, 27 Jan. 2024
Then, the remaining dam was notched on alternating sides, with each notch functioning as a temporary spillway to drain the reservoir while encouraging sediment from the upstream delta to move closer to the dam.
—Alka Tripathy-Lang, Ars Technica, 11 Jan. 2024
Had that not been done between 2018 and 2021, and regular excavations conducted since, last week’s storm would have forced officials to release a full-to-the-brim reservoir through the dam’s spillway, Pestrella said.
—Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2024
In 1914, it was reinforced with concrete poured over its stone work, including the spillway.
—Mark Pazniokas, Hartford Courant, 11 Jan. 2024
The California Department of Water Resources on Wednesday began releasing water from Oroville Dam’s main spillway.
—David Caraccio, Sacramento Bee, 1 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spillway.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near spillway
Cite this Entry
“Spillway.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spillway. Accessed 5 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
spillway
noun
spill·way
ˈspil-ˌwā 
: a passage for extra water to run over or around a dam
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share