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waterlogged

American  
[waw-ter-lawgd, -logd, wot-er-] / ˈwɔ tərˌlɔgd, -ˌlɒgd, ˈwɒt ər- /

adjective

  1. so filled or flooded with water as to be heavy or unmanageable, as a ship.

  2. excessively saturated with or as if with water.

    waterlogged ground; waterlogged with fatigue.
waterlogged British  
/ ˈwɔːtəˌlɒɡd /

adjective

  1. saturated with water

  2. (of a vessel still afloat) having taken in so much water as to be unmanageable

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of waterlogged

1760–70; water + log 1 (apparently in v. sense “(of water) to accumulate in a ship”) + -ed 2

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"Flooding complicates repairs because the fields are waterlogged and some roads are blocked," Enedis crisis director Herve Champenois said at a press briefing Thursday.

From Barron's • Feb. 13, 2026

A spokesperson said one puffin had been found "waterlogged" in Cruden Bay but was being cared for by rescuers.

From BBC • Jan. 28, 2026

As the boat became waterlogged, the men were left sitting in frigid water.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026

They form when waterlogged soils accumulate layers of dead vegetation over thousands of years.

From Science Daily • Nov. 19, 2025

A w'hole waterlogged world of optimism, torn down by the patient work of changing nature.

From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.