sediment

noun

sed·i·ment | \ ˈse-də-mənt

Definition of sediment

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : the matter that settles to the bottom of a liquid

2 : material deposited by water, wind, or glaciers

sediment

verb

sed·i·ment | \ ˈse-də-ˌment

sedimented; sedimenting; sediments

Definition of sediment (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

: to deposit as sediment

intransitive verb

1 : to settle to the bottom in a liquid

2 : to deposit sediment

Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Learn More about sediment

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Synonyms & Antonyms for sediment

Synonyms: Noun

deposit, deposition, dregs, grounds, precipitate, settlings

Synonyms: Verb

lay, settle

Antonyms: Verb

raise

Examples of sediment in a Sentence

Noun

There was a layer of sediment in the bottom of the tank. the sediment at the bottom of the river needs to be routinely dredged so that it doesn't interfere with barge traffic

Verb

the water flowing into the reservoir is sedimenting silt faster than was originally expected

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

That prevents sediment from clouding streams and rivers, which is harmful to endangered fish. — Jonathan J. Cooper, Fox News, "Firefighting mars the earth. California crews are fixing it," 15 Aug. 2018 Those include $300 million for cleaning up toxic sediment from the Great Lakes and $73 million to restore the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. — New York Times, "Spending Plan Passed by Congress Is a Rebuke to Trump. Here’s Why.," 22 Mar. 2018 McCabe said the substances are discovered on a near-daily basis in New Jersey’s drinking water, groundwater, surface waters, sediments, soils, air, fish, plants and other natural resources. — Wayne Parry, The Seattle Times, "New Jersey orders cleanup of clothing, cookware chemicals," 26 Mar. 2019 The chemicals seep into soils, waterways, sediments and groundwater; some are incinerated, generating air pollution. — Michael Casey, The Seattle Times, "EPA decision soon on chemical compounds tied to health risks," 12 Feb. 2019 Its corals have been decimated by the suffocating clouds of sand and sediment churned up by speedboats. — NBC News, "Ailing Thai beach made famous by Leonardo DiCaprio film gets tourist timeout," 31 May 2018 The sediments at Shangchen lack volcanic minerals, which provide the gold standard for radiometric dating methods and are plentiful in Africa. — Ann Gibbons, Science | AAAS, "Our ancestors may have left Africa hundreds of thousands of years earlier than thought," 11 July 2018 So the scientists linked the climate cycles of the Northeast sediments with the accurate uranium-lead dates from the Arizona core. — Nicholas Bakalar, New York Times, "Every 202,500 Years, Earth Wanders in a New Direction," 21 May 2018 Spurs are ridges and grooves are channels, often filled with sediment. — Martina Schimitschek, sandiegouniontribune.com, "At Scripps, a seascape landscape," 5 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

The cores, presented here today at the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America, were captured at the farthest extent of the ash’s reach, recorded as wisps of tephra in finely sedimented, ancient mud uplifted near the ocean floor. — Paul Voosen, Science | AAAS, "Yellowstone’s massive volcano could erupt more frequently than scientists thought," 25 Oct. 2017

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