Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A body of rock or stratum of sediment that retards but does not prevent the flow of groundwater from one aquifer to another.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An impermeable layer along an aquifer.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[aqui– + (re)tard.]

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Examples

  • The zone of saturation occurs because water infiltrating the soil reaches an impermeable layer of rocks so that it is not able to penetrate any further into the earth (this impermeable layer is known as an "aquitard" or

    Featured Articles - Encyclopedia of Earth 2009

  • The zone of saturation occurs because water infiltrating the soil reaches an impermeable layer of rocks so that it is not able to penetrate any further into the earth (this impermeable layer is known as an "aquitard" or

    Featured Articles - Encyclopedia of Earth 2009

  • The zone of saturation occurs because water infiltrating the soil reaches an impermeable layer of rocks so that it is not able to penetrate any further into the earth (this impermeable layer is known as an “aquitard” or “aquiclude”).

    Aquifer 2007

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