Meanings
plural storm drains
- USAn access point or conduit for rainwater that drains directly downstream in a (drainage) basin without passing through sewers or water treatment in order to prevent or belay floods.
Synonyms: storm sewer, highway drain
Synonyms & antonyms
nounAn access point or conduit for rainwater that drains directly downstream in a (drainage) basin without passing through sewers or water treatment in order to prevent or belay floods.
More synonyms by meaning
nouna system of watercourses or drains for carrying off excess water
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
An allusion to their usefulness in catching stormwater and therefore preventing floods.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan embornal
- embornalconduit for rainwater
Chinese Mandarin 雨水排水溝 /雨水排水沟
- 雨水排水溝 /雨水排水沟 (yǔshuǐ páishuǐgōu)conduit for rainwater
Finnish sadevesiviemäri, hulevesiviemäri
- sadevesiviemäriconduit for rainwater
- hulevesiviemäriconduit for rainwater
- hulevesikaivoconduit for rainwater
Greek υπόνομος
- υπόνομος (ypónomos)conduit for rainwater
Polish burzowiec
- burzowiecconduit for rainwater
Portuguese bueiro
- bueiroconduit for rainwater
Spanish cloaca, desagüe
- cloacaconduit for rainwater
- desagüeconduit for rainwater
- agualluvias (sistema)conduit for rainwater
Swedish dagvattenbrunn
- dagvattenbrunnconduit for rainwater
Cite this entry
storm drain. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/storm%20drain
“storm drain.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/storm%20drain. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “storm drain,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/storm%20drain.
Source: storm drain on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.