watershed

American  

[waw-ter-shed, wot-er-] / ˈwɔ tərˌʃɛd, ˈwɒt ər- /

noun

1. Chiefly British. the ridge or crest line dividing two drainage areas; water parting; divide.

2. the region or area drained by a river, stream, etc.; drainage area.

3. Architecture. wash.

4. an important point of division or transition between two phases, conditions, etc..

   The treaty to ban war in space may prove to be one of history's great watersheds.

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adjective

1. constituting a watershed.

   a watershed area; a watershed case.

watershed British  

/ ˈwɔːtəˌʃɛd /

noun

1. the dividing line between two adjacent river systems, such as a ridge

2. an important period or factor that serves as a dividing line

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watershed Scientific  

/ wô′tər-shĕd′ /

1. A continuous ridge of high ground forming a divide between two different drainage basins or river systems.

2. The region enclosed by such a divide and draining into a river, river system, or other body of water.

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watershed Cultural  

1. A ridge of high land dividing two areas that are drained by different river systems. On one side of a watershed, rivers and streams flow in one direction; on the other side they flow in another direction. Also, the area drained by a water system.

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Discover More

By extension, a “watershed” is a critical point that serves as a dividing line: “The parties reached a watershed in the contract negotiations.”

Etymology

Origin of watershed

First recorded in 1795–1805; water + shed ²

Example Sentences

Those decisions could mark a watershed moment for a country where the government’s ability to deliver basic services has become so limited that private firms have taken over many basic civic functions.

From The Wall Street Journal

The states also disagree on how much water should be released from dams in the upper watershed to prevent the river’s two largest reservoirs, Lake Powell and Lake Mead, from falling to perilously low levels.

From Los Angeles Times

Still, the full-scale invasion was a watershed moment.

From BBC

“It’s kind of a startlingly bad picture where virtually all major western watersheds are doing very poorly,” Swain said in a livestreamed discussion of the western snow outlook.

From Los Angeles Times

The last substantial changes to the plan date to 1995 for much of the watershed.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bowl
• lagoon
• pan
• pool
• pot
• tub
• valley