dam
pronunciation
How to pronounce dam in British English:
UK [dæm]
How to pronounce dam in American English:
US [dæm]
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- Noun:
- a barrier constructed to contain the flow of water or to keep out the sea
- a metric unit of length equal to ten meters
- female parent of an animal especially domestic livestock
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- Verb:
- obstruct with, or as if with, a dam
Word Origin
- dam
- dam: [12] Dam, appropriately enough for a word related to the human control of water-courses, seems to have been borrowed from Middle Dutch dam. It appears to have been a fairly widespread West and East Germanic word, subsequently borrowed into North Germanic, but its ultimate source is not known.
- dam (n.1)
- "water barrier," early 14c., probably from Old Norse dammr or Middle Dutch dam, both from Proto-Germanic *dammaz (cognates: Old Frisian damm, German Damm), which is of unknown origin.
- dam (n.2)
- "animal mother," c. 1300, variant of dame (q.v.), also originally used, like that word, for "lady, mother;" but meanings diverged into separate spellings by 16c.
- dam (v.)
- late 15c., from dam (n.1). Related: Dammed; damming.
Example
- 1. Outside experts studied the dam and ordered small changes .
- 2. Unfortunately , an earthquake might liquefy the core of the dam .
- 3. Green dam has the potential to tighten this .
- 4. But admirers of the dam are not yet declaring victory .
- 5. He didn 't know whether it was done for the zipingpu dam .