noun
sluice
sloos
noun
1
A gate or channel that controls the flow of water, often found in canals or dams.
"The lock keeper opened the sluice to let the water level drop."
verb
1
To wash something thoroughly with a flow of water.
"Prospectors used to sluice river gravel to separate out gold."
How to Use Sluice
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA controlled channel or gate for water, or the act of flushing something clean with water.
Common pairings
open the sluice
sluice gate
sluice down
Word Forms
sluiced past tense, sluices plural, sluices singular
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The lock keeper opened the _____ to let the water level drop.
Etymology
From Anglo-Norman "escluse" meaning floodgate, ultimately from Latin "exclūdere," "to shut out" — the same root as "exclude."