1
a
: a barrier preventing the flow of water or of loose solid materials (such as soil or snow)
a beaver dam
an ice dam
especially, civil engineering
: a barrier built across a watercourse for impounding (see impound sense 2) water
b
: a barrier to check the flow of liquid, gas, or air
2
: a body of water confined by a barrier
dammed; damming
1
: to provide or restrain with a barrier that prevents the flow of water : to provide or restrain with a dam (see dam entry 1 sense 1a)
dam a river
2
: to stop up : block
damming up their emotions
zoology
: the female parent of an animal and especially of a domestic animal
the foal's dam
dekameter
Synonyms
Examples of dam in a Sentence
Noun (1)
the river backed up behind the dam until it formed a new lake
Verb
ice floes were damming the river
Recent Examples on the Web
Eli Wizevich, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Jan. 2025
Installation of a dam in that location would require drilling multiple 12.5-mile (20-km) tunnels to divert the river, which flows around 70,600 cubic feet per second (2,000 cubic meters), enough to fill about three Olympic-sized swimming pools per second.
—Joe Salas, New Atlas, 4 Jan. 2025
Shannon McDonagh, Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025
An independent, damming report published in 2022 in Britain found that local police and officials missed numerous opportunities to prevent abuse in the grooming cases stretching back to 2005.
—Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY, 7 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for dam 
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Noun
Against Baker’s wishes, a Supreme Court ruling about the endangered status of the little fish upended progress on a controversial dam in Tennessee for years.
—Eli Wizevich, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Jan. 2025
Installation of a dam in that location would require drilling multiple 12.5-mile (20-km) tunnels to divert the river, which flows around 70,600 cubic feet per second (2,000 cubic meters), enough to fill about three Olympic-sized swimming pools per second.
—Joe Salas, New Atlas, 4 Jan. 2025
Verb
Additionally, 30 percent of the world's long rivers no longer flow freely due to damming and other modifications.
—Shannon McDonagh, Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025
An independent, damming report published in 2022 in Britain found that local police and officials missed numerous opportunities to prevent abuse in the grooming cases stretching back to 2005.
—Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY, 7 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for dam
Dictionary Entries Near dam
Cite this Entry
“Dam.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dam. Accessed 15 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dam
1 of 3 noun
: the female parent especially of a domestic animal
dam
2 of 3 noun1
: a barrier preventing the flow of water
2
: a body of water held back by a dam
dam
3 of 3 verb
dammed; damming
1
: to provide or restrain with a dam
dam a stream
2
: to stop up : block
dammed-up feelings
Etymology
Noun
Middle English dam, dame "lady, female parent"
Noun
Middle English dam "barrier to hold back water"
Medical Definition
dam
1 of 3 noun
: a female parent
—used especially of a domestic animal
dam
2 of 3 noun
: rubber dam see dental dam
dam
3 of 3 abbreviation
dekameter
Biographical Definition
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