dam
dam Lexical Profile
dam Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A strong barrier constructed across a river or waterway to control the flow or raise the level of water, often used to generate electricity or supply water.
"The concrete dam provides essential hydroelectric power to the surrounding valley."
A female parent of an animal, especially used when referring to domestic mammals such as horses, sheep, or dogs.
"The newborn foal stayed close to its dam in the pasture."
• verb
To construct a barrier across a waterway to control, restrict, or stop the flow of water.
"Beavers will often dam a stream to create a safe habitat for their lodge."
To hold back, confine, or suppress a feeling or impulse (often followed by 'up').
"She tried to dam up her frustration during the meeting, but eventually spoke her mind."
Word Nuance & Usage
Often confused in spelling with its homophone 'damn' (to condemn). The noun sense of an animal mother is entirely unrelated to the water barrier, deriving instead from a variant of 'dame'.
• Rhymes for dam
Word Origin & Etymology
The water barrier sense comes from Middle English 'dam', from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German 'dam'. The sense of an animal mother is a 16th-century phonetic variant of 'dame', from Old French 'dame' (lady), ultimately from Latin 'domina'.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.