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DictionaryflumeArtificial water channel
noun / verb

flume

FLOOM/fluːm/

A narrow artificial water channel, or to carry something through one.

A wooden flume carries water from the stream to the mill.

A narrow raised wooden flume carries flowing water downhill along an open trough, with visible ripples and a small spill from its open end.
Etymology
flumeLatinstream, running water

From a word for running water, flume originally meant a stream or river. Its meaning shifted from the water itself to an artificial channel carrying it, especially for mills and industry.

In context

Libranima457:57
Through the breach, they heard the waters pour, as mountain torrents down a flume. The ship!
Moby Dick - Illustrated Audiobook for Focused Reading (Part 3/3)

More examples

  • Logs float down the flume to the sawmill.
  • Engineers measure the flow of water through a concrete flume.
  • Workers flume excess water around the construction site.

Forms

flume · flumes · flumed · fluming

Similar words

chute
A sloping passage for moving things, not necessarily with water.
aqueduct
Carries a water supply, often over a long distance.
canal
Usually a larger artificial waterway for boats or irrigation.