floodway

American  

[fluhd-wey] / ˈflʌdˌweɪ /

noun

1. the channel and adjacent shore areas under water during a flood, especially as determined for a flood of a given height.

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floodway Scientific  

/ flŭd′wā′ /

1. A channel for an overflow of water caused by flooding.

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Etymology

Origin of floodway

First recorded in 1885–90; flood + way ¹

Example Sentences

The commission was criticized in 2011 for its reluctance to open another floodway, the Birds Point-New Madrid Floodway in Missouri, which caused millions of dollars in unnecessary damage to Cairo, Ill., and nearby communities.

From Salon • Aug. 19, 2019

If Army Corps of Engineers opens the Morganza Floodway west of Baton Rouge, it would be for only the third time.

From Washington Times • May 23, 2019

Known as the Red River Floodway, the channel was completed in 1964 at a cost of $63 million.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

But a coalition of opponents — including scientists, taxpayer advocates and environmentalists — warn that the St. Johns Bayou and New Madrid Floodway project will sever one of the river’s remaining natural flows.

From Washington Post • Feb. 11, 2013

The Bird's Point Floodway provides temporary floodplain water storage in a critical area just downstream of the Mississippi-Ohio junction.

From Scientific American • May 20, 2011