groundwater

[ ground-waw-ter, -wot er ]

/ ˈgraʊndˌwɔ tər, -ˌwɒt ər /

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noun

the water beneath the surface of the ground, consisting largely of surface water that has seeped down: the source of water in springs and wells.

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Also ground wa·ter .

Origin of groundwater

First recorded in 1885–90; ground¹ + water

Words nearby groundwater

ground tackle, ground tissue, ground-to-air, ground-to-ground, ground track, groundwater, ground wave, ground ways, ground wire, groundwood, groundwood pulp

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use groundwater in a sentence

Shoddy well construction is considered a primary cause of groundwater contamination at drilling sites.
Two Texas Regulators Tried to Enforce the Rules. They Were Fired.|David Hasemyer, InsideClimate News|December 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Both are major agricultural states that do remarkably little to regulate groundwater.
America’s Axis of Drought|Kate Galbraith|March 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The toxins have polluted the groundwater and poisoned the soil.
Italy’s Triangle Of Death: Naples Residents Blame Child Cancer Rates On Mob Disposal Of Toxic Chemicals|Barbie Latza Nadeau|November 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He happened to be studying groundwater in Weld County when the floods came and decided to change his research goals.
Did Floods Cause a Fracking Disaster in Colorado?|Josh Dzieza|September 19, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Groundwater irrigation has made area farmers rich, and kept countless towns alive across the high plains.
When the Wells Go Dry in the Great Plains|Justin Green|May 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for groundwater

ground water

noun

underground water that has come mainly from the seepage of surface water and is held in pervious rocks

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for groundwater

groundwater

[ ground′wô′tər ]

Water that collects or flows beneath the Earth's surface, filling the porous spaces in soil, sediment, and rocks. Groundwater originates from rain and from melting snow and ice and is the source of water for aquifers, springs, and wells. The upper surface of groundwater is the water table.

Cultural definitions for groundwater

groundwater

Water that seeps through the soil or rocks underground.

notes for groundwater

Groundwater is a source of drinking and spring water for many communities.

notes for groundwater

Groundwater can be contaminated by chemical pollutants. (See water pollution.)