Origin:
1375–1425; late Middle English suer(e) < dialectal Old French se(u)wiere overflow channel (compare Old French ess(e)ouer(e) ditch) < Latin *exaquāria drain for carrying water off, equivalent to Latin ex- ex- + aqu(a) water + -āria, feminine of -ārius -ary; see sew², -er²

Related forms

sew·er·less, adjective

sew·er·like, adjective

Example Sentences

Many sewer systems are overwhelmed, spilling excrement, medical waste and chemicals into waterways.

Water and sewer systems in cities around the country are aging and vulnerable.

He points out other conduits, some dumping clean water into the sewer from underground springs, some releasing dirty water.

EXPAND

Many sewer systems are overwhelmed, spilling excrement, medical waste and chemicals into waterways.

Water and sewer systems in cities around the country are aging and vulnerable.

He points out other conduits, some dumping clean water into the sewer from underground springs, some releasing dirty water.

The guy running the snake down our sewer looks matter-of-fact.

Hansen observed that the sewer vent outside the building was placed directly in front of the structure's air intake.

Comedy is when you walk into an open sewer and die”.

We currently use guided cameras to inspect sewer lines and the like.

Quite a bit of this water goes to waste, circling down the drain or running into the sewer without benefiting anyone.

Right next to the pipe connecting our house to the sewer line running.

The story begins with an exploding sewer and a manhole cover flying through the air which cuts off the head of a priest.

There are pieces of their lore that can sound as far-fetched as the fabled sewer alligator.

It is no small thing to design a sewer system for a city growing at that pace.

Then he stopped, dizzy from the carbon monoxide seeping out of the sewer.

There's no way the waste from an individual toilet can be targeted on its way to the sewer system.

After the sewer system was completed, the county moved all that debt from fixed rates to variable rates.

Known on land as swamp or sewer gas, hydrogen sulfide in higher doses can cause delirium and death.

Thus, they found that the clay pipe leading from my house to the city sewer line had been severed.

In winter, pools of water form slippery ponds of ice leaking from the ruptured water and sewer lines.

Water and sewer lines were buried beneath the crooked lanes.

Comedy is when you fall down an open sewer and die.

From there it is pumped through a three-quarter-inch pipe into the sewer line.

In my street, these enemy forces have their kingdom in the sewer.

He led the survivors out of the burning area through the city sewer system.

Things collect back there because people don't want to dump it down a hole or into a sewer.

But somehow, in making the leap from sewer to salon, pop music has ceased to be an adventure.

COLLAPSE

Dictionary.com Unabridged

noun

a person or thing that sews.

Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English; see sew¹, -er¹

noun

a former household officer or head servant in charge of the service of the table.

Origin:
1300–50; Middle English, aphetic < Anglo-French asseour seater, equivalent to Old French asse(oir) to seat (< Latin assidēre to attend upon; see assiduous) + -our -or²

Link To sewer

Collins

World English Dictionary

sewer¹ (ˈsuːə)

—n
1.	a drain or pipe, esp one that is underground, used to carry away surface water or sewage

—vb
2.	(tr) to provide with sewers

[C15: from Old French esseveur, from essever to drain, from Vulgar Latin exaquāre (unattested), from Latin ex-¹ + aqua water]

sewer² (ˈsəʊə)

—n
	a person or thing that sews

sewer³ (ˈsuːə)

—n
	(in medieval England) a servant of high rank in charge of the serving of meals and the seating of guests

[C14: shortened from Anglo-French asseour, from Old French asseoir to cause to sit, from Latin assidēre, from sedēre to sit]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

sewer

"conduit," 1402, from Anglo-Fr. sewere, O.N.Fr. sewiere "sluice from a pond" (13c.), lit. "something that makes water flow," from aphetic form of Gallo-Romance *exaquaria (cf. M.Fr. esseveur), from L. ex- "out" + aquaria, fem. of aquarius "pertaining to water," from aqua "water."

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