Meaning & use
floodgates
Last updated
Meanings
nounpluraltechnical
Large gates that can be opened or closed to control the flow of water in a river or canal.
Grammar: Usually plural; a single gate is a floodgate.
Patterns
- open the floodgates
- close the floodgates
The city opened the floodgates to lower the water level.
Engineers inspected the floodgates after the heavy rain.
nounpluralfigurative
A situation that allows a sudden, large release of something that was being held back.
Grammar: Used in the phrase open the floodgates, often followed by for or to.
Patterns
- open the floodgates for something
- open the floodgates to something
The court ruling opened the floodgates for similar lawsuits.
Once she started crying, it opened the floodgates and she couldn't stop.
Word forms
| singular | floodgate |
|---|
Common combinations
- open the floodgates
- The new policy opened the floodgates for applications.
- floodgates of emotion
- The reunion opened the floodgates of emotion.
- floodgates of criticism
- His remarks opened the floodgates of criticism.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sluice
- A channel with a gate for controlling water; more technical and less common in figurative use.
Commonly confused: floodgates or flood gate?
floodgates vs flood gate
Flood gate is a less common spelling; the standard form is one word, floodgate.
Practice
The decision to allow free entry ______ the floodgates for people seeking asylum.
Choose one answer.
The idiom is open the floodgates, meaning to allow a sudden large release. Closed or locked would suggest stopping the flow, which is the opposite.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “floodgates”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.