Meaning & use
hydro
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Meanings
noununcountableinformal
Electricity made by the force of flowing or falling water, such as water driving turbines in a dam.
Grammar: No plural; short for hydroelectric power: the province relies on hydro.
Patterns
- hydro power
- generate hydro
Most of the country's electricity comes from hydro.
The village is powered by a small hydro plant on the river.
Hydro is cheaper than gas in this region.
noununcountableCanadianinformal
The household electricity supply, or the bill or company that provides it.
Grammar: Mainly Canadian: pay the hydro bill.
Patterns
- pay the hydro
- the hydro bill
The hydro went out during the storm.
I forgot to pay the hydro bill this month.
Our hydro costs more in winter.
Common combinations
- hydro power
- Hydro power supplies most of the region's energy.
- hydro dam
- The hydro dam spans the whole valley.
- hydro bill
- My hydro bill doubled during the cold snap.
- hydro plant
- The hydro plant sits at the foot of the waterfall.
- hydro line
- A fallen tree knocked down the hydro line.
Synonyms and how they differ
- hydroelectricity
- Hydroelectricity is the full, formal word, while hydro is the short, casual form.
- hydropower
- Hydropower can refer to the energy from water in general, not only electricity.
- electricity
- Electricity is any power source, but hydro in Canada may mean the supply from any source.
Word family
- hydroelectric adjective
- producing electricity from moving water
- hydropower noun
- energy from moving water
- hydraulic adjective
- operated by pressure of liquid
- hydrate verb
- to supply with water
Commonly confused: hydro or hydrogen?
hydro vs hydrogen
Hydrogen is a gas and chemical element, not a source of electricity from water, although both start with hydro.
Practice
In Canada, someone might say, 'The hydro went out during the storm.' What went out?
Choose one answer.
In Canadian usage hydro is household electricity, so it is the power that failed. The other utilities are not meant.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hydro”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.