water tower

American  

noun

• water towers
  plural

1. a vertical pipe or tower into which water is pumped to a height sufficient to maintain a desired pressure for firefighting, distribution to customers, etc.

2. a fire-extinguishing apparatus for throwing a stream of water on the upper parts of a tall burning building.

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water tower British  

noun

1. a reservoir or storage tank mounted on a tower-like structure at the summit of an area of high ground in a place where the water pressure would otherwise be inadequate for distribution at a uniform pressure

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• water towers
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of water tower

First recorded in 1880–85

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

water tower

It seemed surreal that a war more than 6,000 miles away could have reached Braham through the electronic connection between its water tower and well, George said in an interview.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026

The launch complex’s water tower is “also good,” according to Limp, while its big support tower is damaged but repairable.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 2, 2026

The town of 2,000 also features a full Pusser museum, the Buford Pusser fairgrounds, a water tower with Buford’s image on it, and the Buford Pusser Highway.

From Slate ● Nov. 6, 2025

One victim was recently traced in Glasgow after a detective recognised a water tower in the background of a selfie.

From BBC ● May 30, 2025

That maybe it was my own daddy who had landed in this town and found a friend in Ned and made fireworks and blew up a water tower and had people who cared about him.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool

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