floodway

noun flood·way \ ˈfləd-ˌwā \

Updated on: 14 Apr 2018

Definition of floodway

: a channel for diverting floodwaters

Recent Examples of floodway from the Web

The researchers will deploy remote receivers in the floodway and at the entrance to Lake Pontchartrain to monitor the movements of both fish species.

— tristan baurick, NOLA.com, "Spillway opening and BP's spill in this week's coastal news roundup," 9 Mar. 2018
Here’s a heat map of the areas where the most homes have been added in these flood-prone areas, combining the risky floodway, the slightly less risky 100-year floodplain, and the less risky 500-year floodplain.

— mike morris, Houston Chronicle, "See where homes have been built in Houston's floodplains," 27 Mar. 2018
The commission oversees how the Corps runs the system of levees and emergency floodways in the lower Mississippi.

— the washington post, NOLA.com, "Taming the mighty Mississippi: Troubles run deep in changing national waterway," 17 Mar. 2018
Jerry Alegria, a civil engineer and surveyor in attendance, said if the project gets to the mapping stage, the map should delineate the floodway where the creek water runs from the adjacent floodplain.

— julie gallant, Ramona Sentinel, "Greenway project hinges on landowners," 30 Jan. 2018
The flood sparked the federal construction of the levees and floodways that reduced but didn't eliminate the threat of flooding.

— bart jansen, USA TODAY, "Here are the worst hurricanes and floods in U.S. history," 27 Aug. 2017
Boise uses its parks and riverside paths as a natural floodway, to absorb flood waters and prevent flooding downstream.

— rocky barker and bill manny, idahostatesman, "Flooding 101: Why the Boise River overflows its banks, and will again and again," 3 May 2017
Habitat, groundwater and wetlands benefit from this passive flood control, and the Valley has developed a strong consensus on doing as much as possible to use undeveloped parts of the flood plain as floodways.

— rocky barker and bill manny, idahostatesman, "Flooding 101: Why the Boise River overflows its banks, and will again and again," 3 May 2017

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