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water cycle

British  

noun

  1. Also called: hydrologic cycle. the circulation of the earth's water, in which water evaporates from the sea into the atmosphere, where it condenses and falls as rain or snow, returning to the sea by rivers or returning to the atmosphere by evapotranspiration

"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

water cycle Scientific  

Example Sentences

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The WMO stressed the importance of good data to map the developments in the water cycle, warning that significants gaps remained in hard-hit areas.

From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026

“Because of climate change, it is impacting the way the water cycle is behaving.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 15, 2026

Some climate models already account for isotopic processes, but no single model can perfectly capture the complexity of Earth's water cycle.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 15, 2026

Rainfall moves slowly through the water cycle, needing to soak deep through the soil and way down into the groundwater stores.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2025

To the thousands upon thousands of trained hydrologists, meteorologists and agronomists of the federal agencies of agriculture, interior and commerce fell the task of manipulating and guiding the delicate balance of the world's water cycle.

From The Thirst Quenchers by Rick Raphael

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