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spillway

American  
[spil-wey] / ˈspɪlˌweɪ /

noun

  1. a passageway through which surplus water escapes from a reservoir, lake, or the like.


spillway British  
/ ˈspɪlˌweɪ /

noun

  1. Also called: wasteweir.   spill.  a channel that carries away surplus water, as from a dam

"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 spillway

First recorded in 1885–90; spill 1 + way 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:

To handle the extra volume, engineers send surplus water down 5 Shaft into the deep pool below, much like an overflow spillway helps relieve pressure at a full reservoir.

From Science Daily Jul. 6, 2026

Some of what they remove will be used to fill in the dam’s emergency spillway which is carved into the rock beside the river.

From Los Angeles Times May 3, 2024

Lowry found fields of half-submerged corn, soybeans that had disappeared under the flooding almost entirely and rapids rushing from their spillway like a waterfall.

From Seattle Times Nov. 19, 2023

The first thing I saw after claiming a parking spot was a vivid rainbow hanging in the mist above the dam’s spillway.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 21, 2023

On this side of the lake there was a concrete wall with a spillway.

From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya

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