catchment area
Americannoun
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Also called: catchment basin. drainage area. drainage basin. the area of land bounded by watersheds draining into a river, basin, or reservoir
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the area from which people are allocated to a particular school, hospital, etc
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The area drained by a river or body of water.
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The area that absorbs water that contributes to a specific region's groundwater supply.
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.
Italy represents Lufthansa’s largest catchment area outside the U.S. and its other home markets, making Italy a key hub for connecting passengers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 12, 2026
In one village, the Fidesz mayor is also the district doctor for a catchment area covering 32 settlements.
From BBC ● Mar. 26, 2026
The issue has been hugely controversial along the River Wye in recent years, with as many as 23 million chickens - a quarter of the UK's poultry production - raised in the river's catchment area.
From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2025
However, pupils starting school this week in North Yorkshire will only receive free travel to their nearest school instead of any which is within their catchment area.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2025
A patient from Morne Michel, the most distant village in the Zanmi Lasante catchment area, had failed to appear at the clinic for his monthly TB checkup.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
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.
