Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

milldam

American  
[mil-dam] / ˈmɪlˌdæm /

noun

  1. a dam built in a stream to furnish a head of water for turning a mill wheel.


milldam British  
/ ˈmɪlˌdæm /

noun

  1. a dam built in a stream to raise the water level sufficiently for it to turn a millwheel

"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

Etymology

Origin of milldam

Middle English word dating back to 1150–1200; see origin at mill 1, dam 1

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.

See Examples For:

Apparently, this self-taught prairie lawyer also taught himself how to buoy vessels in his early 20s, when a flatboat he worked on ran aground on a milldam in New Salem, Illinois.

From Slate May 29, 2014

The puling Zinovi is called hurriedly to repair a break in a far-away milldam.

From Time Magazine Archive

In the spring the shad ran upriver to breed, but they couldn’t get past the milldam, and the pool was just swarming with them.

From "My Brother Sam is Dead" by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier

We lost our way twice, and after four hours of hard marching, we found ourselves opposite a milldam we crossed early that same morning; for the guides led us all astray!

From Maurice Tiernay Soldier of Fortune by Lever, Charles James

There has been no rain since the first of May, and how the jolly old miller will laugh till the tears fill his eyes when he sees the water rise in the milldam.’

From Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 10 The Guide by Sylvester, Charles Herbert

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Join 12,000,000 vocabulary learners

Start learning new words today on VocabTrainer.
You'll remember them forever.

Start training