: a passage for surplus water to run over or around an obstruction (such as a dam)
Examples of spillway in a Sentence
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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
Unusually heavy rains could trigger a premature opening of 67-year-old Whittier Narrows Dam’s massive spillway, according to the report, posing a potentially catastrophic risk to the more than 1 million people who live and work in the San Gabriel River flood plain east of downtown Los Angeles.
—Louis Sahagún, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2024
The earlier lawsuit said the corps was required to consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service before opening the spillway.
—Emily Wagster Pettus, The Christian Science Monitor, 25 Jan. 2024
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
Unusually heavy rains could trigger a premature opening of 67-year-old Whittier Narrows Dam’s massive spillway, according to the report, posing a potentially catastrophic risk to the more than 1 million people who live and work in the San Gabriel River flood plain east of downtown Los Angeles.
—Louis Sahagún, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2024
The earlier lawsuit said the corps was required to consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service before opening the spillway.
—Emily Wagster Pettus, The Christian Science Monitor, 25 Jan. 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.
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“Spillway.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spillway. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
spillway
noun
spill·way
ˈspil-ˌwā 
: a passage for extra water to run over or around a dam
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