Water, Watercourse, Waterfall, Water Table, Waterway: Origins, Forms, Histories of Words Meaning River, Lake

The natural features of a region are its topography (Greek topos, "place"). Topographic features include rivers, lakes, and related freshwater bodies.

Freshwater features have acquired a wide range of colorful names. In the current alphabetic series of words that refer to such features, here are the origins, forms, and histories of water, watercourse, waterfall, water hole, watering place, water table, and waterway. The dates of forms and meanings come from the Oxford English Dictionary and Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.

Water
Modern English water goes back through Middle English water (12th century) to Old English waeter (before 12th century). The word is akin to Old High German wazzar ("water") and Greek hydor ("water").

The original meaning of water is the liquid that forms rivers, streams, lakes, seas, and so on (9th century).

A general term for any body of standing or flowing water of any size or kind on the surface of the earth, such as a sea, a lake, or a river, is water or waters (before 1100).

In Great Britain, water is often used synonymously with lake or pond (c. 1250). This practice accounts for such place-names as Derwent Water and Ullswater, lakes in the northwestern part of England.

Water also applies, especially in northern England and Scotland, specifically to a river or a stream (c. 1290). In early use, the words the water of often preceded the name of the river, as in the water of Jordan. That practice is still followed in some dialects of northern England and Scotland, especially in the names of small rivers, such as the Water of Esk.

Below are some useful terms incorporating the word water.

Watercourse (1510). A flow of water, such as a river, a brook, or an underground stream.

Waterfall (998). A perpendicular or very steep descent of the water in a stream.

Water hole (c. 1653). A natural hole or hollow containing water.

Watering place (c. 1440). A place where water may be obtained, especially a river or a lake where animals gather to drink.

Water table (1879). The plane below which the rock or soil is saturated with water. Also known as water level (1839).

Waterway. (1) A way or channel for water (c. 1440). (2) A navigable body of water (1858).
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Encyclopaedia Britannica Ready Reference 2004. CD-ROM. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2004.

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. 11th ed. Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 2006.

Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary. 3rd ed. Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 2007.

The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press, 1989.