reservoir

[ rez-er-vwahr, -vwawr, -vawr, rez-uh- ]

/ ˈrɛz ərˌvwɑr, -ˌvwɔr, -ˌvɔr, ˈrɛz ə- /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for reservoir on Thesaurus.com

noun

a natural or artificial place where water is collected and stored for use, especially water for supplying a community, irrigating land, furnishing power, etc.

a receptacle or chamber for holding a liquid or fluid.

Geology. See under pool¹ (def. 6).

Biology. a cavity or part that holds some fluid or secretion.

a place where anything is collected or accumulated in great amount.

a large or extra supply or stock; reserve: a reservoir of knowledge.

OTHER WORDS FOR reservoir

5 store, pool, fund, stockpile, hoard.

See synonyms for reservoir on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of reservoir

1680–90; <French réservoir, equivalent to réserv(er) to reserve + -oir-ory²

Words nearby reservoir

reserve officer, Reserve Officers Training Corps, reserve price, reserve tranche, reservist, reservoir, reservoir rock, reset, resettle, resettlement, res gestae

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

How to use reservoir in a sentence

The unit’s reservoir holds enough water for 90 seconds of use.
Water flossers that get between your teeth|PopSci Commerce Team|August 27, 2020|Popular-Science
From 2009 to 2018, researchers measured the carbon content of springwater fed by the Velino aquifer, which is near the epicenter of the 2009 L’Aquila quake and sits atop a reservoir of CO2 in Earth’s crust.
Carbon dioxide from Earth’s mantle may trigger some Italian earthquakes|Maria Temming|August 26, 2020|Science News
Although salty water can be an extreme environment, the presence of an ocean suggests there might be more of these briny water reservoirs located elsewhere on the dwarf planet, raising hopes Ceres was once a habitable world—and might still be.
The dwarf planet Ceres might be home to an underground ocean of water|Neel Patel|August 11, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Tensions further arose when satellite images revealed a growing reservoir behind the GERD, angering Egypt and Sudan that had demanded that Ethiopia should not start filling the dam without an agreement.
What Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia must overcome to all benefit from the Grand Renaissance Dam|Addisu Lashitew|July 22, 2020|Quartz

We also need rain to fill the reservoirs that provide drinking water.
Let’s learn about rain|Bethany Brookshire|June 17, 2020|Science News For Students
He finished second in 2008 behind John McCain, and maintains a reservoir of good will among Republican social conservatives.
Can Huckabee Convert the GOP’s Moneymen?|Lloyd Green|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
That had to give them an enormous reservoir of moral strength and solace.
Hitler’s Hail Mary|James A. Warren|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“The reservoir for filovirus has remained a huge mystery,” Bruenn said in 2010.
Ebola's Roots Are 50 Times Older Than Mankind. And That Could Be the Key to Stopping It.|Michael Daly|October 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Reservoir Dogs did fantastic internationally, so everyone was waiting for my new movie.
The Secrets of ‘Pulp Fiction’: 20 Things You Didn’t Know About the Movie on Its 20th Anniversary|Marlow Stern|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The animal reservoir for SARS is bats, whereas the reservoir for MERS is primarily camels.
Is Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) the Next SARS?|Dr. Anand Veeravagu, MD, Tej Azad|May 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The bag, being blown up, forms a wind reservoir and the amount of tone can be regulated by the pressure of the arm.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building|George Laing Miller
Then some genius steadied the wind pressure by pumping air into a reservoir partly filled with water.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building|George Laing Miller
A big tank that the city used to have for a reservoir had been bought by a sugar company and turned into a storage for molasses.
The Sunbridge Girls at Six Star Ranch|Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter
He was not writing yet; he was filling up his soul with the thing, making it a reservoir of impressions.
Love's Pilgrimage|Upton Sinclair
And always the usual work of the suction-pumps went on, those pumps now fixed to this great reservoir of millions.
The Nabob|Alphonse Daudet

British Dictionary definitions for reservoir

reservoir

/ (ˈrɛzəˌvwɑː) /

noun

a natural or artificial lake or large tank used for collecting and storing water, esp for community water supplies or irrigation

a receptacle for storing gas, esp one attached to a stove

biology a vacuole or cavity in an organism, containing a secretion or some other fluid

anatomy another name for cisterna

a place where a great stock of anything is accumulated

a large supply of something; reservea reservoir of talent

Word Origin for reservoir

C17: from French réservoir, from réserver to reserve

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 reservoir

reservoir

[ rĕz′ər-vwär′ ]

A natural or artificial pond or lake used for the storage of water.

An underground mass of rock or sediment that is porous and permeable enough to allow oil or natural gas to accumulate in it.

An organism that is the host for a parasitic pathogen or that directly or indirectly transmits a pathogen to which it is immune.

reservoir

OTHER WORDS FOR reservoir

Origin of reservoir

Words nearby reservoir

Words related to reservoir

How to use reservoir in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for reservoir

Word Origin for reservoir

Scientific definitions for reservoir