levees

plural of levee
1
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 The town is worried about the effect the wall would have on a series of berms and levees built in the 1970s and 1980s along the Rio Grande and tributaries to combat flooding. ABC News, 22 July 2026 In the early hours of July 13, 1951 — a day now remembered as Black Friday — water breached the levees protecting Argentine, then swept into Armourdale, the West Bottoms, and the Fairfax industrial district. Michelle Oliva-Espinosa, Kansas City Star, 18 July 2026 In his view, its role is merely to maintain the levees for flood protection. Alula Alderson, Sacbee.com, 30 June 2026 Maintaining urban wetlands can help reduce flooding, protect property and recharge groundwater more effectively and for less money than building and maintaining levees. Eric Palkovacs, The Conversation, 25 June 2026 Another time, Healy visited New Orleans to assist with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, and the experience sent him down a path of studying the political reasons why the city’s levees hadn’t been replaced. Alec Lewis, New York Times, 18 June 2026 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 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for levees
Noun
  • But the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950 shifted federal spending priorities toward national defense and power-generating dams, delaying flood-control measures such as levees designed to protect low-lying communities like Argentine.
    Michelle Oliva-Espinosa, Kansas City Star, 18 July 2026
  • Remote dams create transportation problems Delivering an LPT to a hydropower facility presents another layer of difficulty.
    Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 18 July 2026
Noun
  • Vanuatu has received large loans and aid from China for buildings, wharves and other infrastructure.
    ABC News, ABC News, 29 June 2026
  • 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
Noun
  • Rising sea levels push salt water inland through rivers, canals and shallow groundwater; storm surges cause embankments to collapse, allowing water to seep into soils, rivers and groundwater systems.
    Zakir Hossain Chowdhury, The Dial, 7 July 2026
  • Riding mowers are not designed for wet conditions and are more likely to roll on embankments.
    Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 12 June 2026
Noun
  • New Orleans residents prepared for Bertha's arrival by fortifying their properties with sandbags, and many boat owners in the region moved their vessels out of docks located along the coast to safer locations.
    Kenton Gewecke, ABC News, 22 July 2026
  • By any metric, the West Coast is under threat and under-supported by docks, shipyards and other facilities necessary to keep the Pacific Ocean safe.
    Craig Hooper, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
Noun
  • Shaking from a quake could damage wharves, piers, buildings and roadway above the seawall.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2026
  • Longshore currents can sweep swimmers and surfers into rip currents, piers, jetties, and other hazardous areas.
    NC Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 14 July 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

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Cite this Entry

“Levees.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/levees. Accessed 24 Jul. 2026.

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