gravity dam

American  

noun

1. a dam resisting the pressure of impounded water through its own weight.

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gravity dam British  

noun

1. a dam whose weight alone is great enough to prevent it from tipping over

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Etymology

Origin of gravity dam

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gravity dam

The great slope of Mulholland’s concrete gravity dam in the Hollywood Hills — a model for the one that failed — was covered with dirt to disguise its terrifying height.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

The curved concrete gravity dam towered 1,835 feet above sea level in the San Francisquito Canyon, about 30 miles northwest of L.A.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

For a dam ten feet high, the necessary thickness of the curved dam would probably not be more than twelve inches, while the ordinary gravity dam would be three or four feet thick.

From Rural Hygiene by Henry N. (Henry Neely) Ogden