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catchment

catchment

3 6.4
An area of land that collects rain and sends water into a river or reservoir
  • noun
  • /ˈkæʧmənt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : cuenca
  • Clear objectives must be set before the start of catchment planning.
  • catchment area
  • catchment management
  • river catchment

Examples

  • Opportunities for the community to influence decisions in its catchment are maximized.

    Academic text (1991)
  • The boundaries of the catchment area, including any smaller subcatchment units, must be determined.

    Academic text (1991)
  • For particular areas of interest, communities beyond the catchment should review and comment on the proposals.

    Academic text (1991)
  • The type of information and policy base differs from catchment to catchment, depending on the local issues.

    Academic text (1991)
  • A majority of Philadelphia households are not within the catchment of a high-performing public school.

    Blog text (10)
  • To date, ICM has been implemented in a dozen catchments in Western Australia.

    Academic text (1991)
  • Although 4,000 people live in town, the hospital's geographic catchment area contains 12,000 people.

    Academic text (1997)
  • Some CCBs have rural and mountainous counties within large catchment areas that are spread over many rugged miles.

    Academic text (2013)
  • With Kenya's highest levels of rainfall, the Mau is also the country's largest water catchment.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The area was a water catchment that was closed to the public for 120 years.

Synonyms

basin
vscatchment
72 3.1

An area of land where water collects and flows into a river, lake, or sea

also names artificial structures that collect water, not only land forms
watershed
vscatchment
  • Specialized
16 6.1

An area of land where rain flows into one river

is similar in drainage sense but does not stress the ridge feature
catchment area
vscatchment
  • Specialized
1 5.6

An area of land where rain and water flow into the same river, lake, or reservoir

is the exact same concept used as the main entry term
river basin
vscatchment
  • Specialized
1 3.5

Land where a river and its streams send water to the same place

is broader and can mean either land area or a collecting structure
impoundment
vscatchment
1 7.3

A place where water is kept behind a dam for storage

refers more often to natural land areas that collect runoff rather than built storage
drainage basin
vscatchment
  • Specialized
1 4.0

A large area of land where all the rain and rivers flow into the same river or sea

also covers constructed places that collect and store water
drainage area
vscatchment
  • Specialized
1 3.7

Area of land that sends water into a river or lake

is similar but can also mean a built collection structure
catchment basin
vscatchment
  • Specialized
6.2

An area of land where all rain flows into a river, lake or reservoir

is the same area term but presented with a more general label
retention basin
vscatchment
  • Specialized
5.2

A pond made by people that holds rainwater to prevent flooding and keep the water clean

is a broader term covering natural drainage areas as well as built ponds

Compounds

catchment area
  • Specialized
1 5.6

An area of land where rain and water flow into the same river, lake, or reservoir

catchment basin
  • Specialized
6.2

An area of land where all rain flows into a river, lake or reservoir

How Large

watershed
  • Specialized
16 6.1
drainage basin
  • Specialized
1 4.0
catchment
  • Specialized
3 6.4

Surface Forms

catchment singular
catchments plural

Morphology

catchment = catch (semi-transparent) = catch + ment

The suffix '-ment' indicates the result or means of an action, but the specific meaning related to water collection is specialized.

Etymology

The word catchment comes from the simple verb catch ('to catch' or 'to collect') plus the ending -ment ('a thing or result'). So a catchment is literally the thing that 'catches' water, the land or structure that collects and stores water after rain.