wastewater

Etymology

It is formed from English waste + water, with the adjective,^[1] and is first recorded in late Middle English as waste watre.^[2] The adjective waste is from Anglo-Norman waste, from Latin vāstus (“empty, desolate”);^[1] water is from Old English wæter.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Used water: Dictionary.com dates the word to 1400–50,^[2] Etymonline to the mid-15th century,^[1] and Merriam-Webster's first known use to the 15th century.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The word is also written waste water and waste-water.^[1] Modern dictionaries define it as water that has been used, for example for washing or flushing or in manufacturing, and so contains waste, and equate it with sewage.^[3][4] In law it has two further senses: water that escapes from the canals or ditches of a lawful claimant and runs off the appropriator's land unused, and water left over after a chemical or manufacturing process.^[5] Collins records it as an adjective, relating to waste water.^[6]

Timeline

• 1400–50 – used water, first as late Middle English waste watre.^[2] Etymonline dates it to the mid-15th century.^[1]

Meanings

Noun

1. Water that has been used, as in a home or in manufacturing, and so contains waste products; sewage.^[3][4]
2. In law, water that escapes from a claimant's canals or ditches and runs off the land unused.^[5]
3. Water left over after a chemical or manufacturing process.^[5]

Adjective

1. Relating to waste water: a wastewater treatment plant.^[6]

Related words

• waste
• water

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
2. ^ a b c Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
5. ^ a b c Garner, Bryan A., ed. (2004), Black's Law Dictionary, 8th ed., St. Paul, Minn.: Thomson West
6. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins