water column
noun
plural water columns
1
: a vertical expanse of water stretching between the surface and the floor of a body of water
Shallow feeders, sea lions work the top 600 feet of the water column for hake, rock-fish, herring, sardines … and squid, but opportunistically capturing anything that happens by.—
Downs Matthews
Downs MatthewsOnly a few animals of the water column above would have died and settled into the sediments below during the short time when the mudslide was coalescing into a layer of sediment in the stagnant basin.—Stephen Jay Gould
Stephen Jay Gould2
: a vertical pipe with valves and spout for delivering water to a locomotive tender
Examples of water column in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
These lines are designed to sink to the bottom rather than floating in the water column.
—Joshua Reed, The Conversation, 13 Mar. 2024
In white or silver a grub can represent a baitfish when reeled quickly through the middle of the water column.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 7 Mar. 2024
When the fish are up and aggressive, a spread of live bait will keep them high in the water column.
—David A. Brown, Field & Stream, 7 Mar. 2024
Some animals may move down the water column to darker, colder waters.
—Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2023
The seafloor destruction also launches plumes of carbon into the water column.
—Matt Simon, WIRED, 18 Jan. 2024
Disturbing the seafloor could lead to plumes of sediment rising through the water column, which could disturb sea life for hundreds of kilometers, impacting Norway’s neighbors—such as Iceland, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands—as well as the Arctic more broadly.
—Eliza Gkritsi, WIRED, 12 Jan. 2024
When the water is warm, reel quickly and pop the rod tip to get the lure swimming in any part of the water column.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 4 Jan. 2024
For mesopelagic fish, their poop is potentially released both at a deeper point in the water column and farther from shore, where the ocean itself is much deeper.
—WIRED, 9 Dec. 2023
Joshua Reed, The Conversation, 13 Mar. 2024
In white or silver a grub can represent a baitfish when reeled quickly through the middle of the water column.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 7 Mar. 2024
When the fish are up and aggressive, a spread of live bait will keep them high in the water column.
—David A. Brown, Field & Stream, 7 Mar. 2024
Some animals may move down the water column to darker, colder waters.
—Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2023
The seafloor destruction also launches plumes of carbon into the water column.
—Matt Simon, WIRED, 18 Jan. 2024
Disturbing the seafloor could lead to plumes of sediment rising through the water column, which could disturb sea life for hundreds of kilometers, impacting Norway’s neighbors—such as Iceland, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands—as well as the Arctic more broadly.
—Eliza Gkritsi, WIRED, 12 Jan. 2024
When the water is warm, reel quickly and pop the rod tip to get the lure swimming in any part of the water column.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 4 Jan. 2024
For mesopelagic fish, their poop is potentially released both at a deeper point in the water column and farther from shore, where the ocean itself is much deeper.
—WIRED, 9 Dec. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'water column.' 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 water column
Cite this Entry
“Water column.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/water%20column. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
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