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freshet

freshet

1 9.9
A sudden rush of water that floods rivers after heavy rain or melting snow
  • noun
  • /ˈfrɛʃɛt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : crecida
  • We shall see what wisdom lies within my madness... for this is but the spring freshet that precedes the flood.
  • spring freshet

Examples

  • A snow had fallen overnight, just enough to turn the woods crisp and clean, even as the freshets loosened and sang of springtime.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Among the 146 surveyed islands, about 85 percent of the island formations came from river deposits that created nutrient-rich soil, but the flat terrain caused the islands to become flooded by the spring freshets.

    Academic text (2018)
  • BPA typically exports 40% of its production, but more in spring freshet when all the rivers are running full.

    Blog text (6)
  • The Susquehanna River has already swollen with its annual freshet, as it does every spring.

    Blog text (9)
  • "I bit my lip suddenly, but Brianna hadn't noticed the slip, minor as it was; she was eyeing the ankle-deep freshet running down the gutter."

    Fiction book (1992)
  • The heavy rains caused a sudden freshet, flooding the nearby fields and roads.

  • Every spring, the snowmelt creates a freshet in the mountain streams, bringing fresh water downstream.

  • After days of intense rainfall, the freshet filled the riverbanks and transformed the landscape.

Synonyms

flush
vsfreshet
19 3.1

A sudden flow of water that moves quickly

refers specifically to water surges from rain or snow rather than any liquid
spate
vsfreshet
1 7.9

A sudden large flow of water after heavy rain

often comes from heavy rain or melting snow
flashflood
vsfreshet
4.4

A sudden flood that happens very quickly after heavy rain

is similar but often less violent and may follow snowmelt
waterflood
vsfreshet
6.3

A sudden large flow of water that floods land

is usually a temporary surge caused by rain or melting snow

Antonyms

178 3.7

A long time with no rain that makes the land very dry

44 1.4

The act of letting liquid flow out

How Strong

flood
286 1.0
freshet
  • Specialized
1 9.9
surge
143 4.2
rush
518 1.8

Surface Forms

freshet singular
freshets plural

Etymology

Freshet comes from an old word for fresh plus the small ending -et, so you can imagine a 'small fresh' rush of water. That's why a freshet means a sudden, short flood after heavy rain or melting snow.