culvert

American  

[kuhl-vert] / ˈkʌl vərt /

noun

1. a drain or channel crossing under a road, sidewalk, etc.; sewer; conduit.

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culvert British  

/ ˈkʌlvət /

noun

1. a drain or covered channel that crosses under a road, railway, etc

2. a channel for an electric cable

3. a tunnel through which water is pumped into or out of a dry dock

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Etymology

Origin of culvert

First recorded in 1765–75; origin uncertain

Explanation

A culvert is a drain — but not the kind that drains your bathtub or empties your bank account. A culvert is any kind of channel or tunnel that directs unwanted water away from roads and other corridors of travel. A culvert is typically built underground to prevent inconveniently located streams and rain runoff from flooding roads, highways, streets, and railroads. Culvert can also be used as a verb: if water pools in your driveway and then seeps into the foundation of your house, soaking the brand-new carpet in the basement that you thought you’d just waterproofed, you might wonder why the builders didn’t culvert that underground stream.

Related Words

• duct
• gutter
• pipe