sluice

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“
Here, I repeat, machinery must be used as much and manual labour as little as possible The artificial or portable box-sluice is a series of troughs each about twelve feet long, like the upper compartment of 'Long Tom.'

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Definitions (33)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (10)

  1. noun An artificial channel for conducting water, with a valve or gate to regulate the flow: sluices connecting a reservoir with irrigated fields.
  2. noun A valve or gate used in such a channel; a floodgate: open sluices to flood a dry dock. Also called sluice gate.
  3. noun A body of water impounded behind a floodgate.
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Examples (50)

  • Out of it streamed a great host as swiftly as swirling waters when a sluice is lifted. —  The Lord of the Rings
  • There were Carolinensiel, Bensersiel, etc. Siel means either a sewer or a sluice, the latter probably in this case, for I noticed that each village stood at the outlet of a little stream which evidently carried off the drainage of the lowlands behind. —  The Riddle of the Sands
  • He too said that the sluice was not working as it should, but said that part of the problem was that residents dumped materials into the trenches which impede the flow of the water. —  Stabroek News
  • A resident said he and his family had gone "up the creek" on Sunday afternoon and they noticed that the Lama sluice was broken. —  Stabroek News
  • Searching for a definition for the word "sluice," I naturally turned to my trusty friend, —  Traffick
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This word has been looked up 111 times.

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Etymologies (3)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English scluse, from Old French escluse, from Late Latin exclūsa, from Latin, feminine past participle of exclūdere, to shut out; see exclude.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (2)

  1. Early modern English sluce, sluse, scluse; from Middle English scluse = Middle Dutch sluys, Dutch sluis = Middle Low German sluse, Low German sluis (later G. schleuse) = Danish sluse = Swedish sluss, from Old French escluse, English écuse = Spanish esclusa, from Middle Latin exclusa (also, after Roman, sclusa), a sluice, flood-gate, prop, adjective (sc. aqua, water shut off), feminine of exclusus, shut off, past participle of excludere, shut off: see exclude. Cf. close, recluse, secluse.
  2. Early modern English also sluce; from sluice, n.
 

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/slus/
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