Hi,
In talking about the size of the reservoir in New York's Central Park, my friends and I couldn't seem to find the correct verb to describe what a reservoir does for a city.
What is the verb for "to provide with a drink".
E.g. "The farm feeds the city, the reservoir _____s the city".
Hydrates is close, but it's only for water. Is there a nonspecific verb in English for this action?
Any ideas?
Thanks,
Dan G.
Provides the city with drinking water.
You feed and water livestock; I'd just say the farm feeds it and the reservoir waters it. My first thought was a bit less mundane: sustains; but that is not specific to water...except that without water we can't live.
Hey Dan144, the word construction you seek might best be created rather than dug up...
pluviates: verb
ex. ...upon measured release pent up rainwater in the reservoir pluviates the thirsty city.
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pluvial (adj.)
1650s, "pertaining to rain," from French pluvial (12c.), from Latin pluvialis "pertaining to rain, rainy, rain-bringing," from (aqua) pluvia "rain (water)," from fem. of pluvius "rainy," from plovere "to rain," from PIE root *pleu- "to flow, to swim" (cf. Sanskrit plavate "navigates, swims;" Greek plynein "to wash," plein "to navigate," ploein "to float, swim," plotos "floating, navigable;" Armenian luanam "I wash;" Old English flowan "to flow;" Old Church Slavonic plovo "to flow, navigate;" Lithuanian pilu, pilti "to pour out," plauju, plauti "to swim, rinse").
I agree with Jackie here: water - to give a drink of water to (an animal); also, to take (cattle) to the water to drink
pluviate sounds too narrow, related to rainwater: you might pluviate your cattle, but I don't think you'd want to pluviate your cat or dog.
Also Agree with Jackie. Simple and covers the whole thing.
I dunno. Water doesn't sound right for supplying water to a city. You can water an animal or your lawn or the crops, but it doesn't really work for anything else. I say just go with my original suggestion. You don't always need a single word for some concept. And coming up with some word special for the occasion just doesn't work if you expect your language to communicate. Use it and someone is just going to ask you what it means. You'll probably say, "supply water to the city."
I dunno too.. you can water your plants, water your lawn and your garden.. and evidently someone of an occasion thought to write, "Currently, only 20 per cent of the water pumped from the Tucson basin to water the city is being replaced by rainwater." [New Scientist - May 28, 1987]
'The farm feeds the city' is a simplification because there is a lot more to it. Likewise I think one coùld use 'the reservoir waters the city' in the same oversymplificated way. But do you really need this single word?
"Currently, only 20 per cent of the water pumped from the Tucson basin to water the city is being replaced by rainwater."
not much room for misunderstanding this though, is there?!
As both Faldage and you were doing dunno's I thought you weren't sure. I think it's fine enough.
I think Faldo was being ironic(al); I dunno what I was doing..
Uh, all fresh water was once rainwater. The difficulty lies within Dan133's question. Dan wants to apply a general term for a specific action. That word doesn't seem to exist. So Dan, therefore, must make up a word to serve his concept.
If it floats it will become boat, as they say.
That word doesn't seem to exist. So Dan, therefore, must make up a word to serve his concept. If it floats it will become boat, as they say.
Not necessarily. He could just use a phrase, like "to supply water to" or the like. Not everything requires its own word. Believe you me, if a single verb ever becomes necessary, one will get coined, but it seems no great need exists for the nonce.