Waterpower

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Energy generated by the flow or fall of water, typically used to drive machinery or generate electricity
2. Power produced by harnessing the force of moving water to turn turbines or mills
3. Mechanical or electrical energy obtained from the movement of water in rivers, streams, or waterfalls

Etymology: "Water" is one of English's native words, descended from Old English "wæter" and sharing ancestry with German "Wasser." "Power" arrived from Old French "poeir," which came from Latin "potere," meaning "to be able." So the older sense of "power" was capacity or ability, and the compound originally pointed to what water is able to do. The compound describes the force of moving water harnessed to do work, such as turning a mill wheel. Its literal meaning, "the ability of water," still shows through the modern sense of energy derived from falling or flowing water.

Synonyms: hydropower, water power