white water

US: (hwīt′wô′tər, -wot′ər, wīt′-)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

ˈwhite ˈwa•ter, n. [uncountable]

1. Oceanography bubbly, foaming, frothy water, as in rapids.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

white′ wa′ter, 

1. Oceanography frothy water, as in whitecaps and rapids.
2. Oceanography light-colored seawater over a shoal, sandy bottom, etc.
• 1580–90

white•wa•ter  (hwīt′wô′tər, -wot′ər, wīt′-), adj. 

1. Nautical of or moving over or through rapids:
   whitewater rafting down the Colorado River.

Also, white′-wa′ter. 

• from white water 1900–05

White•wa•ter  (hwīt′wô′tər, -wot′ər, wīt′-), n. 

1. Place Names a town in SE Wisconsin. 11,520.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

white water noun

1. a stretch of water with a broken foamy surface, as in rapids
2. light-coloured sea water, esp over shoals or shallows