ar·te·sian

[ahr-tee-zhuhn]
adjective
noting, pertaining to, or characteristic of an artesian well.

Origin:
1820–30; < French artésien pertaining to Artois (Old French Arteis Artois + -ien -ian), after the wells of this kind in the region

sub·ar·te·sian, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To artesian
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

artesian
1830, from Fr. puits artésien "wells of Artois," French province where such wells were first bored 18c. by Bélidor (1698-1761), from O.Fr. Arteis, from Atrebates, a tribe who lived in northwestern Gallia. Cf. Arras.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
00:10
Artesian is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.
Example sentences
It was built over the town's artesian well to provide protection and shade.
Data indicate that there are two aquifers--a shallow aquifer and an artesian
  aquifer--separated by a clay-and-silt layer.
Another artesian well suddenly began feeding water to an old water trough.
If the pressure is high enough, water can flow from an artesian well.
Related Words
Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
  • Please Login or Sign Up to use the Recent Searches feature
FAVORITES
RECENT