DAM Synonyms: 73 Similar and Opposite Words

dam 1 of 2

noun

ˈdam

Definition of dam

as in levee

a bank of earth constructed to control water the river backed up behind the dam until it formed a new lake

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dam

2 of 2

verb

as in to block

to prevent passage through by filling with something ice floes were damming the river

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to fill

to close up so that no empty spaces remain dam up the pipes

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of dam

Noun

In some ways, shorebirds are analogous to the wolves that hunt the deer and elk populations that eat the tree saplings that become the trees that beavers use to build dams that help the fish—and so on. — Rivka Galchen, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026 Three other similar crypto farms were found last year in the vicinity of the nearby hydroelectric dam in northern Puebla. — CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2026

Verb

The deadly flash flood in Nepal on Wednesday was likely caused by a huge chunk of a glacier that broke off and temporarily dammed a river, according to preliminary investigations by scientists. — Sibi Arasu, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026 That mass of ice and rock dropped from 5,100 to 3,000 meters, damming a river. — Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 27 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for dam

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dam

Noun

However, those levees are aging, and funding to maintain and improve them is becoming scarcer.

— Kaleigh Yost, The Conversation, 10 Sep. 2026
After Katrina made landfall in Louisiana, the failure of New Orleans’ federal levee system inundated about 80% of the city in floodwaters.

— JACK BROOK, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of levee

Verb

Earlier this month, masked demonstrators blocked the port of Dover, in southeast England, and tried to stop a boatload of migrants being taken ashore in Portsmouth on the country’s south coast.

— ABC News, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026
The two decisions came after the Missouri Supreme Court earlier this month blocked Hoskins and local election officials from using the gerrymandered map in November.

— Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of block

Verb

Patients in Medicaid, the state- and federally-funded program for people with low incomes, already pay a nominal co-payment of a few dollars to fill their prescriptions, but lower prices could help state budgets that fund the programs.

— Fatima Hussein, Chicago Tribune, 18 Sep. 2026
Drivers should fill up beforehand, download maps, and check weather and road conditions before leaving.

— Joe Ruch, CBS News, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of fill

Noun

How levees work Levees are earthen embankments positioned parallel to a river that effectively raise the height of the banks of the river to prevent overflow when the river swells.

— Kaleigh Yost, The Conversation, 10 Sep. 2026
As the road curved, Garcia went down an embankment and hit a tree at 101 mph, according to the district attorney's office.

— Cecilio Padilla, CBS News, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of embankment

Verb

After his release, he was arrested last October in the Bronx for obstructing governmental administration and resisting arrest, and was released without bail.

— Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 16 Sep. 2026
Government attorneys wrote that Puig had knowledge of a grand jury proceeding and attempted to obstruct it, satisfying the burden on the first count.

— Sam Blum, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of obstruct

Verb

Stone and Robert Icke, for example, have both built careers on transplanting old stories into slick contemporary containers, and, in varying degrees, those containers can come packed with power.

— Sara Holdren, Vulture, 18 Sep. 2026
Each whisker is packed with sensitive nerve endings at its base that detect tiny deflections, vibrations, and pressure changes when brushing against surfaces.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of pack

Verb

Morgan Creek and Cove Creek will be particularly subject to flooding this morning.

— NC Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 7 Sep. 2026
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) estimates that 300,000 to 500,000 people died, most from the surge flooding coastal islands and tidal flats.

— Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 6 Sep. 2026

Definition of flood

Verb

This systematic integration of DPI means that a small-scale weaver in India or an artisan in Egypt can plug directly into a multi-nation marketplace without navigating complex Western banking rails.

— Mayu Saini, Footwear News, 14 Sep. 2026
This is why the Irish invested in the position last winter, adding Tionne Gray (Oregon) and Francis Brewu (Pittsburgh), plugging a hole that could have undone the rest of the defense.

— Pete Sampson, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of plug

Browse Nearby Words

dallying

dam

damage

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“Dam.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dam. Accessed 21 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of dam

noun

verb

Example Sentences

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