1
as in dams
a bank of earth constructed to control water
the raging floodwaters were too much for the levee to handle
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
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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Recent Examples of levees
Been there as communities have tried to tame the mighty waters with levees and embankments, and battled 100-pound invasive fish.
—
Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 31 May 2026
Reconnecting rivers, many of which have been restricted by levees, to seasonal floodplains can dramatically improve growth and survival for juvenile salmon and increase their resilience to climate change.
—Eric Palkovacs, The Conversation, 26 May 2026
These are fast disappearing, however, as humans drain them for development, dredge canals in them for the oil and gas industry and construct river levees, depriving them of the sediments that stop them being submerged.
—Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 25 May 2026
The Stillaguamish Tribe has been buying riverfront land in its traditional territory and removing levees to turn farmland into wetland with the hope of restoring Chinook.
—John Ryan, NPR, 3 May 2026
Constructing protective structures such as levees and dikes can help, as can preserving natural landscapes, such as wetlands and estuaries that can act as a natural sponge to absorb floodwaters, in and near the cities, Shao and her colleagues wrote.
—Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 22 Apr. 2026
Declines in groundwater levels have in recent years caused household wells to sputter and run dry, streams and wetlands to dry up, and land to sink, damaging canals and levees.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026
But farming communities nationwide have been adversely affected by the president's tariff policy, as global trading partners scaled back agricultural purchases like soybeans in retaliation for higher levees.
—Jennifer Jacobs, CBS News, 17 Mar. 2026
California legislators on Tuesday voiced their support for Senate Bill 872 — a bill aimed at reinforcing Delta levees and the State Water Project by directing $300 million annually to the state’s water infrastructure upgrades and repairs.
—Chaewon Chung, Sacbee.com, 17 Mar. 2026
Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 31 May 2026
Reconnecting rivers, many of which have been restricted by levees, to seasonal floodplains can dramatically improve growth and survival for juvenile salmon and increase their resilience to climate change.
—Eric Palkovacs, The Conversation, 26 May 2026
These are fast disappearing, however, as humans drain them for development, dredge canals in them for the oil and gas industry and construct river levees, depriving them of the sediments that stop them being submerged.
—Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 25 May 2026
The Stillaguamish Tribe has been buying riverfront land in its traditional territory and removing levees to turn farmland into wetland with the hope of restoring Chinook.
—John Ryan, NPR, 3 May 2026
Constructing protective structures such as levees and dikes can help, as can preserving natural landscapes, such as wetlands and estuaries that can act as a natural sponge to absorb floodwaters, in and near the cities, Shao and her colleagues wrote.
—Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 22 Apr. 2026
Declines in groundwater levels have in recent years caused household wells to sputter and run dry, streams and wetlands to dry up, and land to sink, damaging canals and levees.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026
But farming communities nationwide have been adversely affected by the president's tariff policy, as global trading partners scaled back agricultural purchases like soybeans in retaliation for higher levees.
—Jennifer Jacobs, CBS News, 17 Mar. 2026
California legislators on Tuesday voiced their support for Senate Bill 872 — a bill aimed at reinforcing Delta levees and the State Water Project by directing $300 million annually to the state’s water infrastructure upgrades and repairs.
—Chaewon Chung, Sacbee.com, 17 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for levees
Noun
-
European countries removed hundreds of dams last year, reconnecting thousands of miles of rivers.—
Daniel Wine,
CNN Money,
1 June 2026
-
The Colorado River gave the city power, beauty and a bit of unpredictability in roughly equal measure—especially before a system of dams helped tame the floods that had long made the river both useful and volatile.—
Spencer Elliott,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
In San Isidro, a movement was born Castillo and Otero grew up in San Isidro, a working class, hardscrabble neighborhood abutting the wharfs near the Port of Havana, and became friends – one a rapper, the other a visual artist.—
Rick Jervis,
USA Today,
13 May 2026
-
The wharves and warehouses along Pratt Street burned fiercely.—
Jacques Kelly,
Baltimore Sun,
7 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Been there as communities have tried to tame the mighty waters with levees and embankments, and battled 100-pound invasive fish.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
31 May 2026
-
In the wake of the 2007 settlement, tents began to appear on the sidewalks, freeway embankments, overpasses, underpasses, civic plazas and public spaces everywhere in Los Angeles.—
Susan Shelley,
Oc Register,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Several consolidation docks between the inbound and outbound sides of the building will handle vendor shipments.—
Aldo Svaldi,
Denver Post,
31 May 2026
-
Private docks mean boating, wake surfing, paddleboarding and swimming without the logistics of public access.—
Spencer Elliott,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
Given the dramatic manner in which the hulking piers marched down the center of the institution’s narrow corridor, flanked by the photographer’s three-inch-square Polaroids, hung as if in awed supplication, the effect verged on hyperbole, the gnomic ceding to the grandiose.—
James Quandt,
Artforum,
2 June 2026
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Strong longshore currents can sweep swimmers and surfers into rip currents, piers, jetties and other hazardous areas.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
2 June 2026
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
Cite this Entry
“Levees.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/levees. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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