floodgatenoun [ C usually plural ]
uk/ˈflʌd.ɡeɪt/us/ˈflʌd.ɡeɪt/a gate that can be opened or closed to control a flow of water
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Floods, tides & currents
- backwash
- change
- come
- current
- ebb
- ebb tide
- eddy
- flooded
- flooding
- floodplain
- high water mark
- inundate
- low-water mark
- neap tide
- overfall
- undertow
- water
- waterlogged
- watermark
- whirlpool
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Examples from literature
- And the floodgates were lifted.
- He did not wish many people except Mr. Sidney, who very kindly lent his soft meadow behind the floodgates, to be privy to the matter, which he rightly foresaw would take him to the autumn.
- Mr. Sidney saw him while yet far off, and bellowed at him about pig-pounds and floodgates.
Idiom(s)
open the floodgates