white water

noun

variants or whitewater

ˈ(h)wīt-ˌwȯ-tər 

-ˌwä-

: turbulent, frothy water (as in breakers, rapids, or falls)

… it's New England's toughest stretch of … white water, a maze of boulders and narrow channels.

—Michael D. Burke

… he chased whitewater in some of North America's most remote corners …

—Mark Bechtel

When seized by white water, the idea is to swim for the bottom (if you can tell which way that is), pray to stay relaxed and conserve your air …

—Kenny Moore

white water rafting

a whitewater outfitter

white-water paddlers

Examples of white water in a Sentence

The canoe got caught in white water.

Recent Examples on the Web

In natural lakes, good cover includes the rhizomes (root systems) of white water lily or open cavities within curtains of hardstem bulrush. —Cory Schmidt, Outdoor Life, 15 Apr. 2026

In the first photo, the reality star’s cat can be seen sniffing her white water bottle with a gorgeous bowl of green fruits and a green-and-white bouquet of flowers filling the frame in the foreground. —Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 7 Apr. 2026

Go rock climbing, take a ski lesson, snowshoe, kayak, or book a white water rafting tour. —Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2026

Learn how to use Vaseline and a few other common household products to remove white water rings. —Mary Marlowe Leverette, The Spruce, 10 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for white water

• annunciator
• imprimatur
• underwater
• backwater
• bathwater
• blackwater
• breakwater
• deepwater
• edgewater
• feedwater
• floodwater
• freshwater

Kids Definition

white water

noun

: rough foamy water (as in rapids or waterfalls)