swale en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
- /sweɪl/
Etymology
Possibly from Middle English swale (“a shady place, a shadow”), perhaps of North Germanic origin; akin to Old Norse svalr (“cool, fresh”), Icelandic svalir (“a balcony running along a wall”).
Meanings
- A low tract of moist or marshy land.
- A long narrow and shallow trough between ridges on a beach, running parallel to the coastline.
- A shallow troughlike depression created to carry water during rainstorms or snow melts; a drainage ditch.
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Bioswale, a shallow trough dug into the land on contour (horizontally with no slope), whose purpose is to allow water time to percolate into the soil.
The stored water creates an underground reservoir that aids plant growth for tens of feet below the swale. Swales also prevent gullies from forming by intercepting rainwater, slowing it, spreading it, and storing it in the soil.
2009, Toby Hemenway, Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture, 2nd Edition, Chelsea Green Publishing, →ISBN, page 101:
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A shallow, usually grassy depression sloping downward from a plains upland meadow or level vegetated ridgetop.
Jane climbed a few more paces behind him and then peeped over the ridge. Just beyond began a shallow swale that deepened and widened into a valley, and then swung to the left.
1912 January, Zane Grey, chapter 6, in Riders of the Purple Sage […], New York, N.Y.; London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, →OCLC:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| swales | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Translations (20)
de Bruch (low tract of moist or marshy land) · de Drängraben (shallow troughlike depression created to carry water) · de Senke (shallow depression sloping downward from a plains upland or level ridgetop) · pt valeta (shallow troughlike depression created to carry water) · de Flutgraben (shallow troughlike depression created to carry water) · ru низи́на (low tract of moist or marshy land) · pt canaleta (shallow troughlike depression created to carry water) · de Flussniederung (low tract of moist or marshy land) · ru топь (low tract of moist or marshy land) · de Versickerungsgraben (shallow (man-made) trough to allow water to infiltrate the soil) · de Niederung (low tract of moist or marshy land) · cs průleh (shallow troughlike depression created to carry water) · de Bodensenke (low tract of moist or marshy land) · de Versickerungsmulde (shallow (man-made) trough to allow water to infiltrate the soil) · de Sickergraben (shallow (man-made) trough to allow water to infiltrate the soil) · de Aue (low tract of moist or marshy land) · bg дренаж (shallow (man-made) trough to allow water to infiltrate the soil) · bg блатиста низина (low tract of moist or marshy land) · de Rigole (shallow troughlike depression created to carry water) · de Senke (low tract of moist or marshy land)