sewage
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of sewage
Explanation
The waste water that flows down drains and through pipes from toilets and sinks is called sewage. There's nothing quite like smelling sewage on a hot summer day. Have you ever wondered where the soapy, dirty water from your washing machine goes after your clothes are clean? It flows down the drain into a pipe, and is carried with other sewage out to the street and your city's wastewater system, or into a private septic tank. Sewage comes from the now-obsolete verb sew, "to drain or draw off water."
Vocabulary lists containing sewage
The Omnivore's Dilemma
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for June 8–June 14, 2025
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Unit 9, Week 3
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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.
Researchers have identified potential alternatives — including seaweed, cassava waste, single-cell proteins produced by fungi and even sewage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
He pointed to 90 places that authorities have said are good places to swim, but said they'd "been impacted by over 4,000 hours of sewage pollution".
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
Nearly 30 other entities and municipalities — including Beverly Hills, Culver City and West Hollywood — rely on Hyperion to treat their sewage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
Storms can overwhelm the aging facility, which suffered an equipment breakdown in 2021 that led to 17 million gallons of raw sewage gushing into the Santa Monica Bay.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
Water from laundry and dishwashing spilled between the feet of those who walked, for the camp had no sewage system.
From "Tasting the Sky" by Ibtisam Barakat
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
