water
/ˈwɔ.tɚ/ noun, verb, proper noun
Forms waters watering watered wahter wahtuh
- noun (uncountable) An inorganic compound (of molecular formula H₂O) found at room temperature and pressure as a clear liquid; it is present naturally as rain, and found in rivers, lakes and seas; its solid form is ice and its gaseous form is steam. “By the action of electricity, the water was resolved into its two parts, oxygen and hydrogen.”
- noun (uncountable, in particular) The liquid form of this substance: liquid H₂O. “May I have a glass of water?”
- noun (countable) A serving of liquid water.
- noun (alchemy, philosophy) The aforementioned liquid, considered one of the Classical elements or basic elements of alchemy. “He showed me the river of living water, sparkling like crystal, flowing from the throne of God.”
- noun (uncountable or in the plural) Water in a body; an area of open water. “And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.”
- noun (poetic, archaic or dialectal) A body of water, almost always a river, sometimes a lake or reservoir, especially in the names given to such bodies.
- noun (sometimes countable) Mineral water. “Perrier is the most popular water in this restaurant.”
- noun (countable, often in the plural) Spa water; hot springs. “Many people visit Bath to take the waters.”
- verb (transitive) To wet or supply with water; to moisten; to overflow with water; to irrigate.
- verb (transitive) To pour water into the soil surrounding (plants).
- verb (transitive) To provide (animals) with water for drinking. “I need to water the cattle.”
- verb (transitive) To provide water to (someone). “We fed and watered the refugees.”
- verb (transitive, colloquial) To urinate onto. “Nature called, so I stepped into the woods and watered a tree.”
- verb (intransitive) To fill with or secrete water or similar liquid. “Chopping onions makes my eyes water.”
- verb (intransitive) To get or take in water. “The ship put into port to water.”
- verb (intransitive) To gather water. “We stopped at the same well we watered at on the last journey.”
- proper noun A hamlet in Manaton parish, Teignbridge district, Devon, England (OS grid ref SX7580).
- proper noun A hamlet on the B6238 Burnley Road in Rossendale borough, Lancashire, England (OS grid ref SD8425).
- proper noun A barangay of Baco, Oriental Mindoro, Philippines (unconfirmed).
- proper noun A surname
Synonyms
body fluid bodily fluid biofluid emiction lant netting pee peepee piss sig urine wazz wee wee-wee bag of waters bones aqua dihydrogen monoxide (abbr. DHMO) H₂O hydric acid H2O body of water water system water supply piddle weewee irrigate
Antonyms
Etymology
From Middle English water, from Old English wæter (“water”), from Proto-West Germanic *watar, from Proto-Germanic *watōr (“water”), from Proto-Indo-European *wódr̥ (“water”).
* North Frisian waar, weeder, weeter, woar, woor, wååder, wåår (“water”)
* Old Irish coin fodorne (“otters”, literally “water-dogs”)
From Middle English wateren, from Old English wæterian, from Proto-Germanic *watrōną, *watrijaną, from Proto-Germanic *watōr (“water”), from Proto-Indo-European *wódr̥ (“water”).
Cognate with Scots watter (“water”), Saterland Frisian woaterje (“to water”), West Frisian wetterje (“to water”), Dutch wateren (“to water”), German Low German watern (“to water”), German wässern (“to water”), Danish vande (“to water”), Swedish vattna (“to water”), Icelandic vatna (“to water”).
* As an English surname, from the medieval pronunciation of the name Walter.
* As an English and German surname, from the noun water.
* As an Irish surname, adopted as a translation from Ó Fuartháin (see Foran), mistaken for Ó Fuaruisce (“descendant of cold water”), from fuar + uisce.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The fluid which descends from the clouds in rain, and which forms rivers, lakes, seas, etc. "We will drink water." Shak."Powers of fire, air, water, and earth." Milton.
- noun A body of water, standing or flowing; a lake, river, or other collection of water.
- verb To wet or supply with water; to moisten; to overflow with water; to irrigate; as, to water land; to water flowers.
- verb To supply with water for drink; to cause or allow to drink; as, to water cattle and horses.
Etymology [AS. wæter; akin to OS. watar, OFries. wetir, weter, LG. & D. water, G. wasser, OHG. wazzar, Icel. vatn, Sw. vatten, Dan. vand, Goth. wat, O. Slav. & Russ. voda, Gr. udan water, ud to wet, and perhaps to L. unda wave. Dropsy, Hydra, Otter, Wet, Whisky.]
Etymology [AS. wæterian, gewæterian.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “water”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details