Thesaurus results for LEVEES

levees

noun

plural of levee

as in dams

a bank of earth constructed to control water the raging floodwaters were too much for the levee to handle

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as in wharves

a structure used by boats and ships for taking on or landing cargo and passengers we tied the boat up at the levee and started unloading the fish we had caught

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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 levees But the biggest issue in the North Bay is the area immediately east of Petaluma River, west of Lakeville Highway and north of Highway 37, where nearby levees have a high chance of topping over. — CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026 The state is pre-positioning more than 4 million sandbags, more than 50,000 feet of portable flood barriers and 400,000 tons of rock to repair levees. — Adrian Florido, NPR, 11 Oct. 2026 At 18 feet, low-lying rural areas outside the levees begin to flood. — Kansas City Star, 1 Oct. 2026 By the Army Corps’ estimate, by the early 2000s, 86% of Fort Worth’s levees were no longer tall enough to protect against that kind of biblical flooding. — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Sep. 2026 Old levees and dams, for example, can leave a community vulnerable to catastrophic flooding, as the Seattle area saw in December 2025 when flooding from heavy rainfall broke levees in multiple communities. — Bethany Tietjen, The Conversation, 21 Sep. 2026 Before there were levees, there were 4 million acres of wetland here, an inland marsh that took the Sierra’s runoff every spring. — Sean MacAday, Sacbee.com, 20 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for levees

Noun

The country’s other hydroelectric dams produce no more than 100 megawatts combined, the employee said.

— Hamza Fahmy, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2026
Having your gutter system inspected and repaired before winter will also reduce the risk of ice dams forming inside the gutters.

— Timothy Dale, The Spruce, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of dams

Noun

But in 1820, Shippingport had about 600 residents, three wharves for steamboats, taverns and a flour mill.

— Leo Bertucci, Louisville Courier Journal, 16 Aug. 2026
The redevelopment would change that by extending and upgrading existing wharves and dredging areas around the docks.

— David Nikel, Forbes.com, 9 Aug. 2026

Definition of wharves

Noun

Water began to flood the streets of Baja California Sur on Monday hours after residents boarded up homes and set up embankments as Hurricane Polo bore down on the peninsula Monday, threatening high winds, floods and mudslides.

— Megan Janetsky, Chicago Tribune, 28 Sep. 2026
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

Definition of embankments

Noun

The board of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources was considering whether to adopt regulations allowing private docks to extend to 1,500 feet in length — about the length of five football fields.

— AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 28 Oct. 2026
Two docks provide pond access for kayaking and paddleboarding.

— Tori Latham, Robb Report, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of docks

Noun

Something like that happened during the historic storm of late January 1983, which occurred during one of the strongest El Niños on record and battered the coast up and down California, damaging many piers.

— Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2026
Extreme waves that winter destroyed one-third of the Santa Monica Pier and tore off large sections of the Huntington Beach Pier and the Paradise Cove Pier, while also damaging the Seal Beach, San Clemente and Malibu piers.

— Gary Griggs, The Conversation, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of piers

Noun

Wine is embedded in the city’s architecture, history and daily life, from grand 18th-century façades to the bustling quays of the Garonne.

— Joanne Shurvell, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
According to Vantor, the image shows the construction of a dry dock and new quays and piers at one of China’s most strategically important bases.

— Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 8 Dec. 2025

Definition of quays

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“Levees.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/levees. Accessed 4 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of levees

noun

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