floodplain

noun flood·plain \ ˈfləd-ˌplān \

Updated on: 9 May 2018

Definition of floodplain

1 : level land that may be submerged by floodwaters

2 : a plain built up by stream deposition

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Recent Examples of floodplain from the Web

Increasing the depth and width of the creek channel through the entire 2.2-mile project is expected to remove 30 acres from a 100-year floodplain.

— scott huddleston, San Antonio Express-News, "Historic San Pedro Creek: a drainage ditch becomes a culture park," 5 May 2018
Walking the tract, Benavides said that a wall would be a logistical nightmare in the floodplain, that the Border Patrol would be better off investing the money in manpower.

— molly hennessy-fiske, latimes.com, "The great test for Trump's border wall: Texas' Rio Grande Valley," 30 Apr. 2018
In Houston, famed for its rapid construction of relatively affordable, market-rate single-family houses, the ravages of Hurricane Harvey have raised questions about the wisdom of paving so much of the floodplain and drainage areas.

— rick hampson, USA TODAY, "The single-family house: An American symbol facing an uncertain future," 25 Apr. 2018
As those watering holes dry up during the Southern Hemisphere's winter, the herds change their daily routine and start marching across the floodplains in search of a water source.

— meredith bethune, Condé Nast Traveler, "Why You Should Go on a Boat Safari in Botswana," 23 Apr. 2018
Dale Shaver, director of the department of parks and land use, said his team and the DNR were able to direct the water to a surrounding floodplain area without any damage to surrounding properties.

— jordyn noennig, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "School Section Lake in Ottawa is closed after muskrats do damage to dam," 16 Apr. 2018
Nevertheless, for many years, the prevailing theory among archaeologists was that pre-Hispanic settlements in the Amazon were clustered mainly around the fertile lands near the floodplains.

— brigit katz, Smithsonian, "Satellite Images Reveal 81 Pre-Hispanic Settlements in the Amazon," 2 Apr. 2018
Meanwhile development continues to bloom in increasingly vulnerable floodplains, creating more properties that the NFIP pays to repair—sometimes over and over again.

— jen schwartz, Scientific American, "National Flood Insurance Is Underwater Because of Outdated Science," 23 Mar. 2018
The department says impacts to non-tidal wetlands, wetland buffer, stream and floodplain areas are estimated to be about three-fifths of an acre.

— Washington Post, "Maryland issues permit for natural gas pipeline," 16 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'floodplain.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of floodplain

1873

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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FLOODPLAIN Defined for English Language Learners

floodplain

noun

Definition of floodplain for English Language Learners

: an area of low, flat land along a stream or river that may flood
: an area of land built up from soil left by floods

FLOODPLAIN Defined for Kids

floodplain

noun flood·plain \ ˈfləd-ˌplān \

Definition of floodplain for Students

: low flat land along a stream that is flooded when the stream overflows

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See words that rhyme with floodplain Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about floodplain

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