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Glite Dictionary
millrace

millrace

9.9
A channel that carries water to turn a wheel at a mill
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : canal de molino
  • After the heavy rain, the millrace was filled to the brim, driving the mill efficiently.

Examples

  • Millrace just as often.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • Correspondence regarding this article should be addressed to Doris Luft Baker, Center on Teaching and Learning, University of Oregon, 1600 Millrace Drive, Eugene, OR 97403; e-mail: dbaker@uoregon.edu

    Academic text (2011)

  • The water flowed swiftly through the millrace to power the old mill's wheel.

  • During the tour, we learned how the millrace channels water to turn the mill's gears.

Synonyms

raceway
vsmillrace
  • Archaic
1 7.5

A channel that directs water to turn a mill wheel

is the general term focusing on directing flow specifically to drive a millwheel
millrun
vsmillrace
  • Archaic
9.9

A channel that carries water to turn a mill wheel

is the same idea but under an alternate name
headrace
vsmillrace
  • Specialized
9.9

A channel that carries water to a mill or turbine to make power

is similar but refers only to channels for millwheels not turbines
millstream
vsmillrace
  • Archaic
5.6

A stream of water that turns a mill's wheel to give power

is the channel form that specifically directs flow to drive a millwheel

How Strong

torrent
6 4.4
river
∞ 1.0
millrace
  • Archaic
9.9
stream
150 1.0
brook
23 1.0

Surface Forms

millrace singular
millraces plural

Morphology

millrace = mill + race (semi-transparent) = mill + race

The parts 'mill' and 'race' are real words and the compound logic is regular, but 'race' in the sense 'watercourse' is less frequent and may mislead learners who know only the 'competition' sense.

Etymology

Millrace is made of mill and race, and race here used to mean 'a fast running' or 'rush'. So a millrace is the channel where water 'races' to turn the mill wheel.