aquifer

American  

[ak-wuh-fer] / ˈæk wə fər /

noun

• aquifers
  plural

1. any geological formation containing or conducting groundwater, especially one that supplies the water for wells, springs, etc.

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aquifer British  

/ ˈækwɪfə /

noun

1. a porous deposit of rock, such as a sandstone, containing water that can be used to supply wells

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aquifer Scientific  

/ ăk′wə-fər /

1. An underground layer of permeable rock, sediment (usually sand or gravel), or soil that yields water. The pore spaces in aquifers are filled with water and are interconnected, so that water flows through them. Sandstones, unconsolidated gravels, and porous limestones make the best aquifers. They can range from a few square kilometers to thousands of square kilometers in size.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• aquifers
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of aquifer

First recorded in 1900–05; probably from French aquifère (adjective); see aqui-, -fer

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Explanation

An aquifer is an underground water supply — one found in porous rock, sand, gravel, or the like. Your town might get its water from a lake, river, reservoir, aquifer, or some other source. Aquifer is from the Latin aqua ("water") and ferre ("to bear") — an aquifer literally bears water. Some aquifers are massive, such as the Ogallala Aquifer in the United States that stretches across parts of eight states from South Dakota to Texas. But not massive enough — we're draining them faster than the water can be replenished.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

aquifer aquifers

He envisions a massive deployment of measures that are already in use, such as ocean-water desalination and aquifer replenishment, underpinned by federal incentives for reducing consumption.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

Chairman Timothy Williams of the Fort Mojave Indian Tribe said the company’s plan “to pump and sell 25 times more groundwater each year than the aquifer can replenish would desecrate our traditional territories.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026

Residents feared the project would strain the electrical grid and drain their local aquifer.

From Salon ● Jun. 6, 2026

In Memphis, xAI had said it would build a water recycling plant that can reuse wastewater, instead of relying on the region’s aquifer, which provides drinking water for residents.

From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026

“Where does all the water come from? The Court is on a hill, so where’s the aquifer or aqueduct to bring the water up?”

From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo

This is created by the water trickling through unusually thick bands of gypsum under the town, before resting in underground aquifers.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

The deer eat fire-resilient chaparral and other native plants, making way for invasive annual grasses, which ignite more easily, increase erosion and leave less water to soak into aquifers, he said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

Muller said Deep Fission’s reactor is too deep to affect aquifers, and that it will follow all nuclear and oil-and-gas regulations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Furthermore, the centers’ cooling systems need a lot of water, draining local aquifers and water tables, with the more efficient systems still requiring significant amounts.

From Salon ● Jun. 12, 2026

There is also much promise in studies of the Basin's aquifers being carried out by the U.S.

From The Nation's River A report on the Potomac from the U.S. Department of the Interior by United States. Dept. of the Interior.

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