floodgate

noun

Definition of floodgatenext
as in sluice

Related Words

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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 floodgate The floodgates to common sense have busted open, testing political natural selection. — Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 5 June 2026 This doesn’t and shouldn’t open the floodgates throughout the rest of a firm. — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 19 May 2026 Hilary Crowley, a county spokeswoman, said a $100 million floodgate completed in 2024 has been infested with the relentless mollusks, requiring an expensive removal. — Paul Rogers, Mercury News, 8 May 2026 The floodgate will require an expensive removal of the mussels. — Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 1 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for floodgate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for floodgate
  1. sluice
  2. barrier
  3. barrage
  4. barricade
  5. weir
  6. lock
Noun
  • Dam Removal Europe found that the number of dams dismantled in 2025, along with other water-flow controls like weirs, culverts and sluices, grew by 11% from the year before.
    — Chas Newkey-Burden, TheWeek, 3 June 2026
  • The archways are furnished with sluice gates that can open to allow excess water to pass through in periods of flooding.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 8 May 2026
Definition of sluice
Noun
  • Like many inland dikes, the barrier in agricultural fields near the small town of Waddinxveen, east of The Hague, is made of peat that needs to be damp to be strong enough to hold back water.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 2 Aug. 2026
  • Replacing barriers with highways To understand the new design, imagine a conventional topological photonic chip as a road surrounded by wide safety barriers.
    — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of barrier
Noun
  • The United States and Iran each fired barrages of missiles Thursday, as the pattern of back-and-forth strikes took hold again and hope dimmed for any quick resolution.
    — Samy Magdy, Los Angeles Times, 30 July 2026
  • The barrage spanned regions across Ukraine, including western areas near the border with Poland that are far from the front line in the east of the country.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 30 July 2026
Definition of barrage
Noun
  • Punk answered with a flying clothesline off the barricade and went right back to work on Cody’s arm.
    — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026
  • Waiting by the nearby Tito’s barricade were JJ Strain, 24, and Megan Sites, 24, who had traveled from Iowa for the festival.
    — Finnegan Belleau, Chicago Tribune, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of barricade
Noun
  • Removing the weir will lower the entire lagoon’s water level by several feet and restore the ebb and flow of ocean tides to the basin.
    — Phil Diehl, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 May 2026
  • Known as Big John, the man was fined and forced to dismantle his traditional fish weir or risk imprisonment after he was reported for fishing outside of the reservation.
    — Aubrey Violeta Gelpieryn, CBS News, 30 May 2026
Definition of weir
Noun
  • Car owners are advised to go to the dealer to get their drive door lock replaced for free.
    — Taylor Ardrey, USA Today, 30 July 2026
  • At the film’s Shanghai premiere, her short, curly cut was replaced with long, straight locks and choppy baby bangs.
    — Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 30 July 2026
Definition of lock

Browse Nearby Words

flooded
floodgate
floodgates
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Floodgate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/floodgate. Accessed 6 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on floodgate

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about floodgate

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