as in levees
a bank of earth constructed to control water
the river backed up behind the dam until it formed a new lake
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in blocks
to prevent passage through by filling with something
ice floes were damming the river
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in fills
to close up so that no empty spaces remain
dam up the pipes
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 dams
Jake Goodrick, Sacbee.com, 4 Sep. 2025
Shortly after the last of the dams was removed, freeing the Klamath's free flow in late 2024, the salmon that naysayers said would take years to journey past the old reservoirs appeared upstream almost overnight.
—Debra Utacia Krol, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2025
Upon their return—primarily after the reintroduction of wolves—beavers built dams and ponds, slowing water flow and restoring river ecosystems.
—Madison Dapcevich, Outside, 29 Aug. 2025
Federal agencies, local partners, landowners, and conservationists spent more than three decades, millions of dollars, and countless hours removing obsolete dams, restoring wetlands, and reintroducing fish populations to help pull the Roanoke logperch back from the brink.
—Andrew Cunningham, ArsTechnica, 28 Aug. 2025
These most extreme rainfall scenarios can inform design thresholds for high-hazard infrastructure, such as dams and nuclear facilities.
—Austyn Gaffney, The Atlantic, 28 Aug. 2025
What is left of the Kleine Nesthorn is still crumbling, but the village could build dams to block small landslides.
—Daniel A. Gross, New Yorker, 27 Aug. 2025
The Army Corps in 2023 recommended that nine dams along the Fox River be removed, including Elgin’s Kimball Street dam.
—Gloria Casas, Chicago Tribune, 21 Aug. 2025
But a citizen is not permitted, in the current legal climate, to explode federal levees and dams, or to hunt oil and gas executives.
—Nathaniel Rich, Harpers Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025
Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 13 Aug. 2025
Noun
Although more expensive and labor-intensive, the practice replaces much of the Central Valley’s roughly 500,000 acres of rice with temporary wetlands during the winter, a semblance of how the land would naturally function without dams, and levees and civilization.
—Jake Goodrick, Sacbee.com, 4 Sep. 2025
Shortly after the last of the dams was removed, freeing the Klamath's free flow in late 2024, the salmon that naysayers said would take years to journey past the old reservoirs appeared upstream almost overnight.
—Debra Utacia Krol, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2025
Upon their return—primarily after the reintroduction of wolves—beavers built dams and ponds, slowing water flow and restoring river ecosystems.
—Madison Dapcevich, Outside, 29 Aug. 2025
Federal agencies, local partners, landowners, and conservationists spent more than three decades, millions of dollars, and countless hours removing obsolete dams, restoring wetlands, and reintroducing fish populations to help pull the Roanoke logperch back from the brink.
—Andrew Cunningham, ArsTechnica, 28 Aug. 2025
These most extreme rainfall scenarios can inform design thresholds for high-hazard infrastructure, such as dams and nuclear facilities.
—Austyn Gaffney, The Atlantic, 28 Aug. 2025
What is left of the Kleine Nesthorn is still crumbling, but the village could build dams to block small landslides.
—Daniel A. Gross, New Yorker, 27 Aug. 2025
The Army Corps in 2023 recommended that nine dams along the Fox River be removed, including Elgin’s Kimball Street dam.
—Gloria Casas, Chicago Tribune, 21 Aug. 2025
But a citizen is not permitted, in the current legal climate, to explode federal levees and dams, or to hunt oil and gas executives.
—Nathaniel Rich, Harpers Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025
Verb
Glacial outburst floods happen when the ice dams holding back glacial lakes fail, allowing a sudden release of water.
—Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dams
Noun
-
As levees erupted, storm waters easily flowed in.—
Suzette Hackney,
USA Today,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Although more expensive and labor-intensive, the practice replaces much of the Central Valley’s roughly 500,000 acres of rice with temporary wetlands during the winter, a semblance of how the land would naturally function without dams, and levees and civilization.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
But in the late 1970s, researchers began to learn that the drugs helped flood the brain with gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, which in essence blocks your nervous system from receiving too many activation signals.—
P.E. Moskowitz
September 11,
Literary Hub,
11 Sep. 2025
-
The anti-blue lens blocks 90% of blue light and protects your eyes from electronics and everyday life.—
Jacquelyn Smith,
Parents,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Cynthia Erivo returns as Elphaba with the kind of voice that fills a room and a presence that anchors a world.—
Okla Jones,
Essence,
10 Sep. 2025
-
When you're stuck staring at a blank page, your brain fills the space with doubt.—
Jodie Cook,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Family, friends and spectators line the embankments, looking down from pedestrian bridges and the underpasses, holding up signs and cheering.—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
-
Scruton and his team had a weekend to remove the trees, mud, dirt and embankments.—
Jazz Tangcay,
Variety,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Don't tail large vehicles closely - Trucks or buses can kick up a water spray that obstructs visibility.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Don't tail large vehicles closely - Trucks or buses can kick up a water spray that obstructs visibility.—
STAR-TELEGRAM WEATHER BOT,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Power comes from a compact adapter that plugs into either USB-C port.—
Charles Jefferies,
PC Magazine,
15 Aug. 2025
-
Cline plugs into code editors like VSCode and Cursor and provides developers access to AI models of their choice without worrying about arbitrary limits.—
Rashi Shrivastava,
Forbes.com,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Bright sunlight floods the sensors with background noise, surface reflections distort the signal, and long-distance measurements require higher stability than short-range indoor use.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Sep. 2025
-
Rainwater floods their tents and officers go cell-to-cell pressuring detainees to sign voluntary removal orders before they’re allowed to consult their attorneys.—
Kate Payne,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Each stick packs 100 mg of natural caffeine plus five essential vitamins to fuel your day and keep you feeling your best.—
Adam Mills,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Most of these stories are a page or two, but O’Neil packs a lot into a little space.—
James Folta,
Literary Hub,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dams.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dams. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share