meltwater

American

[melt-waw-ter, -wot-er] / ˈmɛltˌwɔ tər, -ˌwɒt ər /

noun

water from melted melt snow or ice.

meltwater British

/ ˈmɛltˌwɔːtə /

noun

melted snow or ice

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of meltwater

First recorded in 1930–35; melt ¹ + water

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The amount of iron carried by meltwater is several times lower than earlier estimates.

From Science Daily

In New York, excavators scooped piles of snow into steaming orange trailers known as "hot tubs," which send the meltwater down into the city's sewer system.

From Barron's

Iron reaches the oceans mainly through airborne dust from deserts and dry regions, as well as through meltwater released by glaciers.

From Science Daily

This allows enormous volumes of meltwater to reach the base of the ice sheet within just a few hours.

From Science Daily

Because seawater in Greenland's fjords is warmer and denser than meltwater, it sinks toward the deeper layers.

From Science Daily

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023