Meanings
- not comparableDry, arid, lacking water.
The waterless desert can kill in many ways but dehydration is often fastest.
2 more examples
Also the Russian lines over which these locomotives run pass through long stretches of waterless country, where the only alternative to hauling additional water-tank wagons is to conserve the water supply by condensing.
1946 January and February, “The Why and The Wherefore: Condensing Locomotives”, in Railway Magazine, page 62Contrasting the luxurious life of the foreigners with the overcrowded, fetid, waterless existence of the Arabs.
1978 April 29, Robert Etherington, “Cast As Decandents, Again”, in Gay Community News, page 13 - not comparableNot requiring water.
How does a waterless urinal have a drain trap?
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Germanic*watōrlausaz
- Old Englishwæterlēas“waterless”
- Middle Englishwaterles
- Englishwaterless
From Middle English waterles, waterlees, from Old English wæterlēas (“waterless”), from Proto-Germanic *watōrlausaz, equivalent to water + -less. Cognate with Saterland Frisian woaterloos (“waterless”), West Frisian wetterleas (“waterless”), Dutch waterloos (“waterless”), German wasserlos (“waterless”), Swedish vattenlös (“waterless”), Icelandic vatnslaus (“waterless”).
More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-Germanic
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek ἄνυδρος
- ἄνυδρος (ánudros)lacking water
Bulgarian безводен
- безводен (bezvoden)lacking water
Catalan anhidre
- anhidrelacking water
Danish vandløs
- vandløslacking water
Esperanto senakva
- senakvalacking water
Greek άνυδρος
- άνυδρος (ánydros)lacking water
Norwegian Bokmål vannløs
- vannløslacking water
Polish bezwodny
- bezwodnylacking water
Scottish Gaelic gun uisge
- gun uisgelacking water
Spanish sin agua
- sin agualacking water
Turkish susuz
- susuzlacking water
Cite this entry
waterless. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waterless
“waterless.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waterless. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “waterless,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waterless.
Source: waterless on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.