polder

noun

pol·​der ˈpōl-dər How to pronounce polder (audio)
: a tract of low land (as in the Netherlands) reclaimed from a body of water (such as the sea)

Examples of polder in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web These areas, called polders, were meant to protect communities and agriculture from storm surge. Mahadi Al Hasnat, Vox, 30 May 2024 The grassy, flat polder was perfect for geese. Andrew Curry, Discover Magazine, 4 May 2010 Construction workers make polders to protect the shore of Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. National Geographic, 1 Nov. 2019 And in Grootschermer, the Netherlands, a thin strand of houses lines an elevated road amid a sea of polders – emerald green strips of farmland reclaimed precariously from the sea. Steven Litt, cleveland.com, 23 June 2019 But the nation's engineers became masters of draining wetlands by creating what are called polders: Tracts of land surrounded by dikes that were then drained or pumped dry. Ken Jennings, CNT, 28 Aug. 2017 That is, in part, because the 6,000 kilometers of embankments that surround the polders are helping to fuel sea level rise. Eduardo Garcia Gil, Slate Magazine, 7 Aug. 2017 Kinderdijk, which translates to children's dike, lies in the Alblasserwaard polder (land that's been reclaimed from the sea, marshes or river floodplains) at the confluence of the Lek and Noord rivers. John Marshall, chicagotribune.com, 30 June 2017

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'polder.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Dutch

First Known Use

1602, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of polder was in 1602

Dictionary Entries Near polder

Cite this Entry

“Polder.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/polder. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.

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