as in tributary
usually headwaters plural
the beginning part of a stream
the first exploration of the Missouri River from its mouth to its headwaters was made by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in the early 1800s
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Recent Examples of headwater
The Cassai Life Atlas discoveries build on a decade's worth of surveys led by the National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project within the Okavango and Lungwevungu headwaters, which uncovered a combined total of over 70 species confirmed new to science, according to The Wilderness Project.
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Bailey Richards,
PEOPLE,
3 June 2026
The headwaters of the Yadkin River were not located in the area of heaviest rainfall and the threat for flooding has ended there.
—
Nc Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
27 May 2026
From its headwaters high in the Oakland Hills throught the city's Fruitvale District to where the waters eventually empty into the Oakland Estuary and San Francisco Bay, Sausal Creek is a historic treasure.
—
Molly McCrea,
CBS News,
8 May 2026
Already primed for catastrophe, townspeople’s discovery that developers had quietly targeted Acton for multiple battery projects stoked fears of industrial blight, fire and contamination of residential water wells and the nearby headwaters of Southern California’s last free-flowing river.
—
Bloomberg,
Oc Register,
23 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for headwater
Bailey Richards,
PEOPLE,
3 June 2026
The headwaters of the Yadkin River were not located in the area of heaviest rainfall and the threat for flooding has ended there.
—
Nc Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
27 May 2026
From its headwaters high in the Oakland Hills throught the city's Fruitvale District to where the waters eventually empty into the Oakland Estuary and San Francisco Bay, Sausal Creek is a historic treasure.
—
Molly McCrea,
CBS News,
8 May 2026
Already primed for catastrophe, townspeople’s discovery that developers had quietly targeted Acton for multiple battery projects stoked fears of industrial blight, fire and contamination of residential water wells and the nearby headwaters of Southern California’s last free-flowing river.
—
Bloomberg,
Oc Register,
23 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for headwater
Recent Examples of Synonyms for headwater
Noun
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The property features over a mile of frontage along Fall River and controls two of the river’s primary spring-fed tributaries — Spring Creek and Lava Creek, according to Hall and Hall.
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For more precise information, Three Rivers Waterkeeper, a nonprofit that helps protect and restore the water quality of the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio rivers and their surrounding watersheds, samples the rivers and tributaries weekly each summer as part of its Swim Guide program.
Noun
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Under state law, any single gift — or multiple gifts from the same source that add up to $50 or more during the annual period — must be disclosed.
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In conversations with nearly a dozen sources close to the White House, most of whom requested anonymity to discuss private interactions, allies of the president and vice president said Trump isn’t sold on Vance as his 2028 pick.
Cite this Entry
“Headwater.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/headwater. Accessed 28 Jun. 2026.
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