as in milestones
a point in a chain of events at which an important change (as in one's fortunes) occurs
a watershed moment in her life came when she inherited a reasonable sum of money and was able to start her own coffee shop
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Recent Examples of watersheds
Improvements began after policymakers recognized the mountains as vital watersheds for neighboring communities.
—
Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 15 Apr. 2026
Each year, Heal the Bay collects trash from beaches and watersheds across Los Angeles County with the help of thousands of volunteers.
—Cbs La Staff, CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026
Without rain in the forecast for the next seven days, the extreme drought that has gripped the Interstate 35 corridor, including the Austin metro area, parts of the Texas Hill Country and much of the region's watersheds is likely to not only persist but also intensify.
—Roberto Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 21 Mar. 2026
Mallard Creek is one of the largest watersheds in the county.
—Charlotte Observer, 11 Mar. 2026
While local watersheds may still recover after wet years, the Colorado River has less room to rebound.
—Hayleigh Evans, AZCentral.com, 2 Mar. 2026
Two wolves roamed separately into the southern end of Colorado’s Front Range mountains in February, passing through watersheds west of Pueblo and Colorado Springs, a map released Wednesday by Colorado Parks and Wildlife shows.
—Elise Schmelzer, Denver Post, 25 Feb. 2026
River rafting and tubing can be more adventurous with fuller watersheds during these months, but the scenery blooms bright green and is more stunning than ever.
—Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 30 Jan. 2026
The problem is that gauges are unevenly distributed across the planet, and some of the places where better monitoring matters most — remote regions, fast-changing watersheds, politically complex borders — are often the hardest to measure consistently.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 15 Apr. 2026
Each year, Heal the Bay collects trash from beaches and watersheds across Los Angeles County with the help of thousands of volunteers.
—Cbs La Staff, CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026
Without rain in the forecast for the next seven days, the extreme drought that has gripped the Interstate 35 corridor, including the Austin metro area, parts of the Texas Hill Country and much of the region's watersheds is likely to not only persist but also intensify.
—Roberto Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 21 Mar. 2026
Mallard Creek is one of the largest watersheds in the county.
—Charlotte Observer, 11 Mar. 2026
While local watersheds may still recover after wet years, the Colorado River has less room to rebound.
—Hayleigh Evans, AZCentral.com, 2 Mar. 2026
Two wolves roamed separately into the southern end of Colorado’s Front Range mountains in February, passing through watersheds west of Pueblo and Colorado Springs, a map released Wednesday by Colorado Parks and Wildlife shows.
—Elise Schmelzer, Denver Post, 25 Feb. 2026
River rafting and tubing can be more adventurous with fuller watersheds during these months, but the scenery blooms bright green and is more stunning than ever.
—Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 30 Jan. 2026
The problem is that gauges are unevenly distributed across the planet, and some of the places where better monitoring matters most — remote regions, fast-changing watersheds, politically complex borders — are often the hardest to measure consistently.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for watersheds
Noun
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Your athletic endeavors are now about maintenance, not milestones.—
Zach Przystup,
Baltimore Sun,
27 Apr. 2026
-
The couple has included their children in several of the pregnancy milestones, including a visit to the doctor for Whitney's 20-week ultrasound.—
Charna Flam,
PEOPLE,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Participants will travel by shuttle while park rangers discuss the historic sites, including four landmarks that visitors can go inside.—
Doug Ross,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Apr. 2026
-
For almost 60 years, this was one of the city's least inviting landmarks, with increasingly stringent security deterring even the most placid of curious onlookers.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Anderson is here for the melodrama, the special lessons and the climaxes that fall flat.—
Jessica Lipsky,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
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The band has never sounded this melodic before; Wroth in particular brings a constant dynamism to his guitar solos, often layering two and reaching climaxes that refuse to collapse into just a flurry of notes, building off Phantom Slaughter’s keyboard melodies with a real sense of drama.—
Sam Goldner,
Pitchfork,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
But none of these conflicts affected so many corners of the world as swiftly as the Iran war.—
Sudarsan Raghavan,
New Yorker,
28 Apr. 2026
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Brazzell is a 6-foot-4, 198-pound target who glides by his opposing corners with ease.—
Alex Zietlow,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Watersheds.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/watersheds. Accessed 30 Apr. 2026.
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