I got corrected by somebody who ought to know when I wrote about a "lake." It's not a lake, they said, it's a "reservoir" created by a dam, and it supplies water to a city not far away.
I've called it a lake all my life. Is that wrong?
I got corrected by somebody who ought to know when I wrote about a "lake." It's not a lake, they said, it's a "reservoir" created by a dam, and it supplies water to a city not far away.
I've called it a lake all my life. Is that wrong?
A reservoir is a man-made lake.
A reservoir is specifically a man-made lake created primarily for water storage for human use in either power generation or municipal water supplies.
My paternal grandparents had a cottage on a man-made lake created by infilling wetlands to build on.
Yes, a reservoir is a man-made lake, but not all man-made lakes are reservoirs.
Technically, reservoir is correct. However ... when did we speak correctly? I grew up in an area of the US with many reservoirs, As best my memory serves me, the people of the area called them Lake XXXX, depending on the dam's name. Think Lake Mead.
Technically, reservoir is correct. However ... when did we speak correctly? I grew up in an area of the US with many reservoirs, As best my memory serves me, the people of the area called them Lake XXXX, depending on the dam's name. Think Lake Mead.
Or, the Caspian Sea which is a lake, or Lake Pontchartrain which isn't...
However ... when did we speak correctly? I grew up in an area of the US with many reservoirs, As best my memory serves me, the people of the area called them Lake XXXX,
Calling it a lake is speaking correctly. A reservoir is a man-made lake. All reservoirs are lakes, though not all lakes, not even all man-made lakes are reservoirs.
though not all lakes, not even all man-made lakes are reservoirs.
Lake Pleasant's history shows that. It was created by the construction of Carl Pleasant Dam in 1927. Initially, it was smaller and used for irrigation, but it was later expanded and converted into a reservoir for the Central Arizona Project (CAP).
Here in AZ almost all of the reservoirs are labeled as lakes. Lake Mead, Lake Powell, Roosevelt Lake, Lake Pleasant, Canyon Lake, Saguaro Lake, and Bartlett Lake.
There are some exceptions like Horseshoe Reservoir, and San Carlos Reservoir.
And even some natural lakes that weren't made by dams like Lake Havasu, and Alamo Lake.
I got corrected by somebody who ought to know
Maybe they ought to know, but that doesn't mean they do. As others have pointed out, a reservoir is a lake, so calling it a lake is just fine, just not as specific as it might be. Calling a natural lake a reservoir, though, would be incorrect.
Calling a natural lake a reservoir, though, would be incorrect.
Reservoir
1: a large natural or artificial lake used as a source of water supply.
A natural lake will become a reservoir by the act of making it a water supply.
AJ
I grew up in England. As best I remember, something was called a reservoir if it had obvious man-made embankments at the edges as well as a dam of some kind. If it looked like a lake, that is, natural edges, then it was a lake.
Then I migrated to Australia. In Australia (or at least in NSW, where I live) then the dam is called a dam. But the water held back by a dam is also called a dam, even if the body of water is formally called Lake xxxxx. So, you jump into the dam to cool off on a hot day. The term reservoir is restricted to what I grew up calling water towers, I've never heard it applied to a body of water.
Ian
The term reservoir is restricted to what I grew up calling water towers, I've never heard it applied to a body of water.
I've lived in 3 different states & have visited people in several others.
In every one a water tower is a water tower. A reservoir is a lake used for water supply.
If it serves a dual purpose (eg water supply and flood mitigation), then it is a lake- eg Lake Wivenhoe in QLD.
Grant
Darwin NT
Australia.
The term reservoir is restricted to what I grew up calling water towers, I've never heard it applied to a body of water.
Water towers aren't meant for bulk water storage. Their purpose is to maintain water pressure in the system in the event of sudden spikes in demand. They function much like a capacitor does on the electric grid.
Quabbin Reservoir, built by "disincorporating" four towns in Western Massachusetts and flooding them around the time the Depression began, creating the largest lake in the Commonwealth to satisfy Boston's growing need for drinking water.
I've never heard of it being called "a lake" by anyone around here, but your mileage may vary...
I've never heard of it being called "a lake" by anyone around here
Is it used for water recreation like boating and fishing? If not, I can see not calling it a lake.
No, it's 99% restricted in that regard. There IS a small portion where you can fish on the Quabbin, but I don't fish, so I'm not even sure if you can use motors on that portion…
Quabbin Reservoir, built by "disincorporating" four towns in Western Massachusetts and flooding them around the time the Depression began, creating the largest lake in the Commonwealth to satisfy Boston's growing need for drinking water.
I've never heard of it being called "a lake" by anyone around here, but your mileage may vary...
Just the opposite here:
There's a very large, man-made lake near me, Lake Wallenpaupack, a reservoir in Northeastern Pennsylvania. After Raystown Lake, it is the second-largest lake contained entirely in Pennsylvania. I don't believe anybody has ever called it a reservoir.
It was created in 1926 by the PPL Corporation for hydroelectric purposes, as well as flood control, but it is best known as one of several major recreational destinations in the Pocono Mountains.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Wallenpaupack
Yes it is used for boating and fishing, but it has been called a reservoir from day one, as that was its main purpose.
IMHO
It depends on what an author is writing.
If it is a technical or scientific paper the a lake is a body of water formed by natural geologic forces.
A reservoir is a body of water created by human technology.
In fiction a 'body of water' is whatever fits the local vernacular.
Form follows function unless form is the function.
Further reading:
https://www.usgs.gov/water-science-school/science/lakes-and-reservoirs
If it is a technical or scientific paper the a lake is a body of water formed by natural geologic forces.
From your own cite:
But, in fact, a reservoir is a manmade lake that is created when a dam is built on a river.
That says that a reservoir is a lake.
From your own cite:
But, in fact, a reservoir is a manmade lake that is created when a dam is built on a river.
That says that a reservoir is a lake.
That's what I get for trying to be clever. :(
We were out at our church picnic today at "The Que." I Googled to make sure I wasn't crazy. Officially maps label it as the Quemahoning Reservoir but we also call the lake the "Quemahoning Dam" Google shows the terms used interchangeably "Hiking the Quemahoning Dam trails...", "Fishing at Quehmahoning Dam using...", "What town is under the Quemahoning Dam?" I don't think I've ever called it "reservoir" in speech.
For fiction, if the location is in the 'real' world then use the term used by those in the region. For non-fiction, then use the official term used for that body of water.