as in tributary
usually headwaters plural
the beginning part of a stream
the first exploration of the Missouri River from its mouth to its headwaters was made by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in the early 1800s
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Recent Examples of headwater
Located in a very secluded, quiet corner of Texas Hill Country, Lost Maples State Natural Area, spanning nearly 3,000 acres, contains the headwaters of the Sabinal River and trails that lead up to views of undisturbed rolling hills.
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Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 14 Feb. 2025
Through a series of 31 interactive exhibits, visitors journey down the Fraser River to the headwaters of the Upper Colorado River Basin, where water is diverted across the Continental Divide into metro Denver.
—Gigi Ragland, The Denver Post, 14 Jan. 2025
It is often referred to as the headwaters of California because its lakes and aquifers help provide clean drinking water to the rest of the state.
—Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
What happens upriver in the Upper Klamath Lake, which is considered the headwaters of the Klamath, all the way down to the Pacific Ocean, everything effects everything else.
—Dana Taylor, USA TODAY, 6 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for headwater
Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 14 Feb. 2025
Through a series of 31 interactive exhibits, visitors journey down the Fraser River to the headwaters of the Upper Colorado River Basin, where water is diverted across the Continental Divide into metro Denver.
—Gigi Ragland, The Denver Post, 14 Jan. 2025
It is often referred to as the headwaters of California because its lakes and aquifers help provide clean drinking water to the rest of the state.
—Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2025
What happens upriver in the Upper Klamath Lake, which is considered the headwaters of the Klamath, all the way down to the Pacific Ocean, everything effects everything else.
—Dana Taylor, USA TODAY, 6 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for headwater
Cite this Entry
“Headwater.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/headwater. Accessed 25 Apr. 2025.
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