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dry lake

American  

noun

  1. a tract of land in a desert region over which a shallow lake is formed during the rainy season or after prolonged heavy rains.


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.

But the lake soon retreated and farming resumed on the dry lake bed.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 3, 2025

Black Rock City Municipal Airport appears in the desert for 13 days each year around festival time, using two runways on the dry lake bed, and then disappears, according to its website.

From Reuters • Sep. 4, 2023

The seasonally dry lake bed abuts Steens Mountain to the west, with a low ridgeline to the east and miles of parched earth in between.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 5, 2023

From its signature red-colored soil to canyons, dead volcanoes and dry lake beds, the Martian landscape has intrigued humans for generations.

From Salon • Apr. 25, 2023

The dry lake flats and scrub-oak ridges could be confusing.

From "Ceremony:" by Leslie Marmon Silko