Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Spring on Mackinac Island, northern Michigan. In some religious contexts, springs have been considered sacred by Pagans, Christians, and other religions. A spring is As…. A spring is a natural discharge point of subterranean water at the surface of the ground or directly into the bed of a stream, lake, or sea. In order to know how to use a spring appropriately, whether for a mineral bath or drinking water you must perform a comprehensive water quality test. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). An example of spring is the water outlet that forms a pond. This may give the water flavor and even carbon dioxide bubbles, depending on the nature of the geology through which it passes. Mineral springs are alleged to have healing properties. A spring is a natural discharge point of subterranean water at the surface of the ground or directly into the bed of a stream, lake, or sea. Wells are holes excavated to bring water and other underground fluids to the surface. The names of gods and goddesses of the sea can be counted as water names, as can the names of mythical mermaids and other water creatures. Basalt and sandstone aquifers are also sources of water for many springs. The rapid development of new wells through over-drilling, however, has tended to reduce head pressures in many artesian systems. 2966–7: 1.1.1.1. A spring tide is a common historical term that has nothing to do with the season of spring. Despite tap water being considered drinkable by the EPA, it can lead to numerous problems. Rarely used alone in Old English, appearing more often in compounds, such as wyllspring "wellspring," espryng "water spring." Spring means a source of water from the ground, particularly a very small pond. A spring may flow the whole year or only sometimes. Springs are often used as sources for bottled water. The term "holy well" is commonly employed[by whom?] Springs can discharge fresh groundwater either onto the ground surface, directly into the beds of rivers or streams, or directly into the ocean below sea level. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. In ancient Egypt and Greece, temples erected to Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine, were often near such springs, and festivals in his honour have been located as far apart as Ancyra in Asia Minor and Agrigentum in Sicily. It is best to search out a water test or purchase one yourself before making a habit of drinking regularly from any spring. Geysers, a spectacular form of hot spring, eject tall plumes of hot water and steam. Water that emerges at the surface Spring, in hydrology, opening at or near the surface of the Earth for the discharge of water from underground sources. Just because a spring is bottled and sold as spring water does not mean that it is contaminant free. Mineral water contains no less than 250 parts per million (ppm) of tds. A spring is a place where groundwater flows out of the ground. In Greek mythology Pegasus was the winged horse that sprang from the blood of Medusa after she was killed by Perseus. When these strata are tilted or folded into a structural trap, the water in the lower part of the aquifer is stored under pressure. Spring water is water that is harvested from a natural spring. Spring water definition: water taken from a natural spring | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples See more. As in the spa-therapy (bathing in mineral waters) of contemporary…, …the healing power of natural springs is long-standing and widespread. Tallulah: Tallulah, the Anglicized version of Tuilelaith, is an Irish name meaning ‘leaping water’. Names that mean water include names that mean ocean and sea, waves and tide, and rain and mist. Human activity may also affect a spring's discharge—withdrawal of groundwater reduces the water pressure in an aquifer, decreasing the volume of flow.[6]. According to FDA regulations, to qualify as "spring water," the water can't be collected anywhere except at the site of the spring. Rather, the term is derived from the concept of the tide "springing forth." Springs that contain large amounts of dissolved sodium salts, mostly sodium carbonate, are called 'soda springs'. Like any source of water, springs are used for various reasons. Our spring water is then passed through multiple stages of filtration to remove particles and other unwanted elements. ...for swenge swat ædrum spron… [citation needed] The lore and mythology of ancient Greece was replete with sacred and storied springs—notably, the Corycian, Pierian and Castalian springs. to refer to any water source of limited size (i.e. Corrections? (intransitive) To burst forth, particularly 1.1. Water—as the source of life in many myths, as that which is an absolute necessity for existence, and as that which cleanses—is the most all-encompassing means of restoring health. Soaking in them is said to result in the absorption of the minerals from the water. The aquifers that receive and discharge the largest quantities of groundwater are unconsolidated materials such as sand and gravel. Hot spring definition, a thermal spring having water warmer than 98°F (37°C): the water is usually heated by emanation from or passage near hot or molten rock. Spring water comes from an underground source from which water naturally rises to the surface. ayin: a spring (of water) Transliteration: ayin Definition: a spring (of water) NAS Exhaustive Concordance. The action of the groundwater continually dissolves permeable bedrock such as limestone and dolomite, creating vast cave systems. The names of notable rivers, such as Hudson and Jordan, and other bodies of water are listed here. “Artesian” well water differs from regular well water because it has more pressure in the aquifer, which helps push the water up when a water company taps the aquifer. Spring Water: Water obtained from a natural spring, which may be bottled and sold to the public, or in which a person bathes for alleged therapeutic benefits Most of the springs whose individual discharges exceed 3 cubic metres per second (100 cubic feet per second) originate from limestone and basalt aquifers. Another popular variation of Talise is Tallis. What does spring mean? Along with Hudson and Jordan, other water baby … If the pressure is sufficiently high and a well is sunk through the capping layer, the water will rise to the surface without pumping. Some springs have also been used commercially as a means of producing bottled mineral water. Non-artesian springs may simply flow from a higher elevation through the earth to a lower elevation and exit in the form of a spring, using the ground like a drainage pipe. Springs can be classified by their water temperature. See more. Still other springs are the result of pressure from an underground source in the earth, in the form of volcanic activity. There is a constellation in the northern sky named after the horse. Definition of spring water : water from a spring Examples of spring water in a Sentence Recent Examples on the Web The school once had a pump that sent spring water to its faucets. Factors that affect the recharge include the size of the area in which groundwater is captured, the amount of precipitation, the size of capture points, and the size of the spring outlet. The word for "springs" is NEBEK (transliterated from Hebrew), an unusual word referring to the places where water issues or bursts out of the earth. They may or may not be. The quality of water discharged by a spring depends on the type of aquifer and rock strata through which the water has passed, the temperatures along the route, and the volume of circulating water, past and present. It is a component of the hydrosphere. Groundwater tends to maintain a relatively long-term average temperature of its aquifer; so flow from a spring may be cooler than other sources on a summer day, but remain unfrozen in the winter. (of liquids) To gush, to flow suddenly and violently.quotations ▼ 1.1.1. The cool water of a spring and its branch may harbor species such as certain trout that are otherwise ill-suited to a warmer local climate. The…, …to the surface as artesian springs. From the Greek Πήγασος (Pegasos), possibly either from πηγός (pegos) meaning "strong" or πηγαῖος (pegaios) meaning "from a water spring". Springs have been used for a variety of human needs - including drinking water, domestic water supply, irrigation, mills, navigation, and electricity generation. The water eventually emerges from below the surface, in the form of a karst spring. Meaning of spring. Spring water is a type of bottled water that comes from under the ground and flows naturally to the earth's surface. There is a constellation in the northern sky named after the horse. Many resorts have developed around mineral springs and are known as spa towns. Springs that contain significant amounts of minerals are sometimes called 'mineral springs'. The meaning of Talise is ‘lovely water’. Spring tides occur twice each lunar month all year long without regard to the season. Links. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. Christian legends often recount how the action of a saint caused a spring's water to flow - a familiar theme especially in the hagiography of Celtic saints. A spring may be the result of karst topography where surface water has infiltrated the Earth's surface (recharge area), becoming part of the area groundwater. This can take the form of a particular name, an associated legend, the attribution of healing qualities to the water through the numinous presence of its guardian spirit or of a Christian saint, or a ceremony or ritual centred on the well site. Fracture, joint, or tubular spring, occurs when groundwater running along an impermeable layer of rock meets a crack (fracture) or joint in the rock. not a lake or river, but including pools and natural springs and seeps), which has some significance in local folklore. Most thermal springs are rich in dissolved minerals while many mineral springs are warm. This is why spring water is often bottled and sold as mineral water, although the term is often the subject of deceptive advertising. A spring is a point at which water flows from an aquifer to the Earth's surface. Springs definition, a city in S Transvaal, in the E Republic of South Africa, E of Johannesburg. Water from springs is usually clear. Spring water has a noticeably crisper flavor than purified or mineral waters because nothing has been added to it — but not all spring bottled water is the same. A sacred spring, or holy well, is a small body of water emerging from underground and revered either some religious context: Christian and/or pagan and/or other. In parts of the United States a stream carrying the outflow of a spring to a nearby primary stream may be called a spring branch or run. In Greek mythology Pegasus was the winged horse that sprang from the blood of Medusa after she was killed by Perseus. In some areas, artesian wells and springs are a major source of water, especially in arid plains adjacent to mountain ranges that receive precipitation. (Springs without such mineral content, meanwhile, are sometimes distinguished as 'sweet springs'.) This water is bottled from the spring of the river. Springs that are managed as spas will already have such a test. Groundwater is least modified where it travels shallowly over short distances through pervious formations depleted of soluble minerals. Point at which water emerges from an aquifer to the surface, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Springs - The Water Cycle, from USGS Water-Science School", "https://directives.sc.egov.usda.gov/OpenNonWebContent.aspx?content=26985.wba", "Heads Above Water: The Inside Story of the Edwards Aquifer Recovery Implementation Program by Robert L. Gulley", https://www.britannica.com/science/spring-water, Stunning turquoise natural spring Kiikunlähde at Hollola, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Spring_(hydrology)&oldid=999914972, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles to be expanded from October 2010, Articles needing additional references from February 2018, All articles needing additional references, Articles with unsourced statements from February 2016, Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from April 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Depression spring, is a spring which occurs along a depression, such as the bottom of, Contact Spring, which occurs along the side of a hill or mountain is created when the. The largest springs are called "first-magnitude", defined as springs that discharge water at a rate of at least 2800 liters or 100 cubic feet (2.8 m3) of water per second. Springs have taken on a kind of mythic quality in that some people believe, falsely, that springs are healthy sources of drinking water. Updates? This is called an artesian well. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. spring definition: 1. the season of the year between winter and summer, lasting from March to June north of the…. Synonyms: geyser, hot spring, fount [literary], well head More Synonyms of spring In limestone regions, rainwater sinks through holes or other openings and is drained chiefly through underground passages. This is possible even if the outlet is in the form of a 300-foot-deep (91 m) cave. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. A spring is a location where groundwater naturally emerges from the Earth's subsurface in a defined flow and in an amount large enough to form a pool or stream-like flow. For instance, water heavy with iron or tannins will have an orange color.[1]. For example, sacred springs like Pierian, Corycian, and Castalian were common in Ancient Gre… Thermal springs occur in volcanic regions and in areas where rock layers have been broken and folded in geologically recent time. Learn more. Spring, in hydrology, opening at or near the surface of the Earth for the discharge of water from underground sources. Sometimes the water in an aquifer becomes confined between two impermeable rock layers, such as clay or shale. Definition of spring (Entry 2 of 3) 1 a : a source of supply especially : a source of water issuing from the ground b : an ultimate source especially of action or motion This depends on the water getting into the ground all of the time or only once in a while (snow melting). Sand and gravel aquifers in humid regions yield good-quality water, whereas water from springs and seeps in arid areas may be contaminated by undesirable mineral deposits. Well water is obtained mostly from such aquifers, particularly those underlying lowland areas. Modern uses include recreational activities such as fishing, swimming, and floating; therapy; water for livestock; fish hatcheries; and supply for bottled mineral water or bottled spring water. However some springs may be colored by the minerals that are dissolved in the water. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. spring water - underground water that is held in the soil and in pervious rocks ground water , well water H2O , water - binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 … The scale for spring flow is as follows: Minerals become dissolved in the water as it moves through the underground rocks. It is a component of the hydrosphere. Water in springs, seeps, and wells generally originates as rainfall that has soaked into the soil and percolated into underlying rocks. spring (third-person singular simple present springs, present participle springing, simple past sprang or sprung, past participle sprung) 1. Some locations contain many first-magnitude springs, such as Florida where there are at least 27 known to be that size; the Missouri and Arkansas Ozarks, which contain 10[7][6] known of first-magnitude; and 11[8] more in the Thousand Springs area along the Snake River in Idaho. Omissions? Permeable rocks (those containing interconnected pore spaces through which water can migrate), such as limestone and sandstone, store and transmit water and are called aquifers. 54. In medieval Europe, pagan sacred sites frequently became Christianized as holy wells. These aquifers occur widely and discharge groundwater partly through springs, but mostly through evaporation and seepage. A thermal or hot spring has a water temperature significantly higher than the mean air temperature of the surrounding area. spring (n.2) "source of a stream or river, flow of water rising to the surface of the earth from below," Old English spring "spring, source, sprinkling," from spring (v.) on the notion of the water "bursting forth" from the ground. After the brine has been washed away, limestone and sandstone rocks usually yield good-quality, though hard, freshwater. Spring is a water resource formed when a side of a hill or valley bottom intersects a flowing body of ground water. Job must have pondered this question with amazement, for although he had seen many springs on the land, he had no experience with undersea springs… The result can be water at elevated temperature such as a hot spring. I'll bet that if you look at a bottle of water, it claims to be 'natural spring' water. This mineral content is referred to as total dissolved solids (TDS). Springs containing a noticeable amount of dissolved substances are called mineral springs. To the north are the hot springs of Banyas de Sant Loan. From the Greek Πήγασος (Pegasos), possibly either from πηγός (pegos) meaning "strong" or πηγαῖος (pegaios) meaning "from a water spring". A spring is a place where water comes up through the ground. The water quality in sedimentary rocks of marine origin depends on the degree of freshwater flushing. Ring in the new year with a Britannica Membership, This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/science/spring-water, USGS Water Science School - Springs and the Water Cycle, spring - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). Springs can be used as a source of water for domestic use, electricity generation, fish hatcheries, irrigation, swimming, recreational activities, and navigation. The groundwater then travels through a network of cracks and fissures—openings ranging from intergranular spaces to large caves. Water from a spring often flows downhill, along the land. Spring water naturally flows to the surface, but well water is piped to the surface from an aquifer, water trapped in layers of rock and dirt. While this may or may not be true, what exactly do they mean by 'spring'? [1], Spring discharge, or resurgence, is determined by the spring's recharge basin. The forcing of the spring to the surface can be the result of a confined aquifer in which the recharge area of the spring water table rests at a higher elevation than that of the outlet. Beowulf, ll. Water may leak into the underground system from many sources including permeable earth, sinkholes, and losing streams. In some cases entire creeks seemingly disappear as the water sinks into the ground via the stream bed. Although the water must rise to the surface on its own in order to be classified as natural spring water, we collect spring water at the source. This page was last edited on 12 January 2021, at 16:08. Word Origin from the same as ayin Definition a spring (of water) NASB Translation fountain (1), Fountain (3), fountains (1), spring (11), springs (4). Tali, meaning ‘dew’, will make the best nickname for Talise. When purchasing bottled water labelled as spring water you can often find the water test for that spring on the website of the company selling it. There is also a risk of lead in tap water due to lead being present in the pipes that bring tap water to your home. Springs can occur when hydrologic, geologic or human forces cut into underground layers of soil and rock where water is in movement. A spring is a point at which water flows from an aquifer to the Earth's surface. In this case the cave is used like a hose by the higher elevated recharge area of groundwater to exit through the lower elevation opening. ‘This spring water was used in the font in the church to christen babies.’ ‘Watercress is grown in gravel beds through which thousands of gallons of fresh spring water is passed.’ ‘At the distillery, the barley is milled to produce grist, to which heated spring water is added.’ Spring water forced to the surface by elevated sources are artesian wells. Unlike many forms of bottled water that are filtered and treated to remove impurities, water from a natural spring is considered to contain a beneficial level of minerals and is normally bottled directly at the source. Springs are often classified by the volume of the water they discharge. It is also the water that comes from that place. So you have plenty of options in your kitty. Water that emerges at the surface without a perceptible current is called a seep. …cults have been associated with springs and other sources of water. The water emerges 9 miles (14 km) away, forming some of the discharge of Mammoth Spring in Arkansas. This is how rivers start. Grand Gulf State Park in Missouri is an example of an entire creek vanishing into the groundwater system. For one, chlorine is not ideal for human consumptionwhile our bodies can technically handle it, chlorine can lead to a variety of health complications and is potentially carcinogenic (leads to cancer). A spring may also be the result when an aquifer gets filled, and water overflows onto the land surface.