millrace

[ mil-reys ]

noun
  1. the channel in which the current of water driving a mill wheel flows to the mill.

  2. the current itself.

Origin of millrace

1
First recorded in 1470–80; mill1 + race1

Words Nearby millrace

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

How to use millrace in a sentence

  • On the starboard quarter they caught a confused rushing noise, like the subdued murmur of a millrace.

    The Pillar of Light | Louis Tracy
  • Moss and grass on a millwheel in the Midi are no surer signs of abandonment and disuse than a dry millrace.

    Riviera Towns | Herbert Adams Gibbons
  • The crowd caught and bore them both along like chips in a millrace, keeping the interval constant.

    Assignment's End | Roger Dee
  • Mechanically the lad walked along the millrace, which was made of hewn boards and hollow logs.

    The Last Stetson | John Fox Jr.
  • The tide was going like a millrace, and the solemn roar of the vast stream made very terrible music in the dark.

    The Romance of the Coast | James Runciman

British Dictionary definitions for millrace

millrace

millrun

/ (ˈmɪlˌreɪs) /


noun
  1. the current of water that turns a millwheel

  2. the channel for this water

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