Sewage is the waste water carried away from buildings. Raw sewage, sewage treatment, a sewage works.
Separating it from drinking water is the single greatest public health measure ever taken, and it saved more lives than any medicine. Storm overflows release untreated sewage into rivers when the system is overwhelmed, which is a live scandal in Britain.
1nounsewageThe waste water carried away from buildings.
“Raw sewage was pouring into the river from a broken pipe.”
sewage is waste.
From sewer plus -age. Sewer comes from Old French essouier, to drain, from Latin ex plus aqua, water.
Proto-Indo-European
*h₂ékʷeh₂
Latin
ex — out of, from
Vulgar Latin
*exaquāria — drain for carrying water off
Old French
sewiere — overflow channel for a fishpond
Anglo-Norman
sewere — water-course
Middle English
sewer
English
sewer
English, today
sewage
Built from
From sewer + age or from sew (“to drain or draw off water”) + -age. sewer comes from Middle English sewer, seuer, from Anglo-Norman sewere (“water-course”), from Old French sewiere (“overflow channel for a fishpond”), from Vulgar Latin exaquāria (“drain for carrying water off”), from Latin ex (“out of, from”) + aquaria (“of or pertaining to waters”) or from a root exaquāre.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA