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Cistern vs Ditch - What's the difference?

cistern | ditch |

As nouns the difference between cistern and ditch

is that cistern is a reservoir or tank for holding water, especially for catching and holding rainwater for later use while ditch is or ditch can be a trench; a long, shallow indentation, as for irrigation or drainage.

As a verb ditch is

or ditch can be to discard or abandon.

cistern

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • A reservoir or tank for holding water, especially for catching and holding rainwater for later use.
  • * 1913 , A.C. Cotter, ",
    • Their extreme necessity is attested by the countless number of old, unused cisterns with which the Holy Land is literally honeycombed.
  • * {{quote-book
    • , year=2001 , author=Philip J. King and Lawrence E. Stager , title=Life in Biblical Israel , chapter=3 , isbn=0664221483 , page=126 , passage=Cisterns (bôr'', ''b?'r ), mentioned frequently in the Bible, are artificial reservoirs, usually cut into bedrock, for collecting and conserving rain runoff from roofs and courtyards.}}
  • (technical) In a flush toilet, the container in which the water used for flushing is held; a toilet tank.
  • * {{quote-book
    • , year=2003 , author=Allan Windust , title=Waterwise House & Garden: a Guide for Sustainable Living , chapter=9 , isbn=0643068007 , page=36 , passage=It is possible to connect your tank to your toilet cistern and/or garden, so that even if the water is not drinkable it still can be used productively to make major water savings.}}
  • (anatomy) A cisterna.

    • Anagrams

    * ----

    ditch

    English

    Etymology 1

    From earlier deche, from (etyl) dechen, from (etyl) .

    Verb

    (es)

    • Noun

    (en-noun)

    • Etymology 2

    From (etyl) dich, from (etyl) .

    Noun

    (es)
  • A trench; a long, shallow indentation, as for irrigation or drainage.
    • Digging ditches has long been considered one of the most demanding forms of manual labor.
    Derived terms
    * ditchdigger * ditch weed * ditcher * ox is in the ditch
    See also
    * fosse * moat

    Verb

  • To discard or abandon.
    • Once the sun came out we ditched our rain-gear and started a campfire.
  • To deliberately crash-land an airplane on the sea.
    • When the second engine failed, the pilot was forced to ditch ; their last location was just south of the Azores.
  • To deliberately not attend classes; to play hookey.
    • The truant officer caught Louise ditching with her friends, and her parents were forced to pay a fine.
  • To dig ditches.
    • Enclosure led to fuller winter employment in hedging and ditching .
  • To dig ditches around.
    • The soldiers ditched the tent to prevent flooding.
  • To throw into a ditch.
    • The engine was ditched and turned on its side.
    Synonyms
    * abandon * discard * dump * jettison * lose * shed * See also