sluice
UK: sluːs | US: sluːs
n. 1. A man-made channel or gate for controlling the flow of water, especially in a river or canal.
vt. 2. To wash or rinse with a stream of water.
vt. 3. To channel or direct (water or other substances) through a sluice.
sluice = slu<to flow> + ice<noun suffix>
- slu (from Old French escluse, meaning "to flow" or "floodgate," derived from Latin exclusa "a barrier to stop water")
- ice (a noun-forming suffix in English, often indicating a tool or structure)
Etymology Origin:
The word "sluice" traces back to Latin exclusa ("a barrier"), referring to structures that control water flow. Through Old French escluse, it entered Middle English as scluse, later simplified to "sluice." The morpheme slu preserves the core idea of flowing water, while -ice marks it as a functional object. This reflects the word's evolution from a descriptive term to a technical noun for hydraulic engineering.
The miners used a sluice to separate gold from gravel.
She sluiced the mud off her boots with a hose.
The dam’s sluice gates were opened to prevent flooding.
They sluiced water through the pipeline to clean it.
The old mill had a wooden sluice directing water to the wheel.