Tennessee Valley Authority

American  

noun

1. TVA.

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Tennessee Valley Authority Cultural  

1. A corporation created by the federal government in the Great Depression to promote the economic development of the Tennessee River and adjoining areas. The TVA, known as a builder of dams, is responsible for flood control, the generation of electric power, soil conservation, and other areas of economic development. The TVA was part of the New Deal.

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Example Sentences

Some government corporations, such as Amtrak and Tennessee Valley Authority, are allowed to invest retirement funds in a traditional portfolio.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026

GE Vernova’s first reactor in the U.S. will be in Tennessee, funded by the Tennessee Valley Authority, the largest public energy provider in the country.

From Barron's • Feb. 8, 2026

The Tennessee Valley Authority just inked significant new contracts to expand its arrays of solar panels and batteries, and New Jersey passed a bill to curb limits on expanding community solar.

From Slate • Feb. 6, 2024

On Jan. 17, as bitter cold swept across many of the seven states it serves, the Tennessee Valley Authority hit its highest peak electricity demand ever.

From New York Times • Feb. 5, 2024

At the lake’s western end, where the Little Tennessee River flows into it, stands a big hydroelectric dam, 480 feet high, built by the Tennessee Valley Authority in the 1930s.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson