as in tributary
usually headwaters plural
the beginning part of a stream
the first exploration of the Missouri River from its mouth to its headwaters was made by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in the early 1800s
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Recent Examples of headwater
The city paid $750,000. 1 of 2 Since the flood, the water district was ordered by federal regulators to drain Anderson Reservoir, the largest in the county, which sits near the headwaters of Coyote Creek, and rebuild its 240-foot-high earthen dam.
—
Paul Rogers, The Mercury News, 20 Feb. 2025
Over the course of three days, more than 30 inches of rain had fallen in Busick, 7 miles away near the South Toe’s headwaters.
—Usa Today Graphics Team, USA TODAY, 31 Dec. 2024
Through a series of 31 interactive exhibits, visitors journey down the Fraser River to the headwaters of the Upper Colorado River Basin, where water is diverted across the Continental Divide into metro Denver.
—Gigi Ragland, The Denver Post, 14 Jan. 2025
Instead of reducing releases from the big reservoirs that the Lower Basin uses, the Upper Basin has to cut back according to what’s flowing down headwater streams.
—Brandon Loomis, The Arizona Republic, 6 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for headwater
Paul Rogers, The Mercury News, 20 Feb. 2025
Over the course of three days, more than 30 inches of rain had fallen in Busick, 7 miles away near the South Toe’s headwaters.
—Usa Today Graphics Team, USA TODAY, 31 Dec. 2024
Through a series of 31 interactive exhibits, visitors journey down the Fraser River to the headwaters of the Upper Colorado River Basin, where water is diverted across the Continental Divide into metro Denver.
—Gigi Ragland, The Denver Post, 14 Jan. 2025
Instead of reducing releases from the big reservoirs that the Lower Basin uses, the Upper Basin has to cut back according to what’s flowing down headwater streams.
—Brandon Loomis, The Arizona Republic, 6 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for headwater
Cite this Entry
“Headwater.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/headwater. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
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