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Simple English definitions for legal terms
high-water mark
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A quick definition of high-water mark:
A high-water mark is a line that shows the highest point that water reaches during high tide in the sea or a freshwater lake. It can also refer to the line that a river leaves on the soil when it covers it for a long time. The low-water mark is the opposite, showing the lowest point that water reaches during low tide in the sea or a river. Additionally, a watermark is a design or symbol on paper that shows it is genuine or made by a specific manufacturer.
A water ordeal is a type of trial where a person is thrown into water to determine their guilt or innocence. This practice is no longer used today.
Waterpower is the energy that is created by converting water into power. It can also refer to the right of a landowner to use the fall in a stream that passes over or through their land to create energy.
A more thorough explanation:
A high-water mark is a mark that indicates the highest point to which water rises or falls. This can refer to:
- The shoreline of a sea reached by the water at high tide. This is usually calculated as the mean or average high tide and not the extreme height of the water.
- The highest point on the shore of a freshwater lake created by a dam in an unnavigable stream to which the dam can raise the water in ordinary circumstances.
- The line that a river impresses on the soil by covering it long enough to deprive it of agricultural value. This is also known as the high-water line.
For example, if you go to the beach and see a line of seaweed or debris on the sand, that is likely the high-water mark from the previous high tide.
Low-water mark, on the other hand, refers to the shoreline of a sea marking the edge of the water at the lowest point of the ordinary ebb tide or the point to which the water recedes at its lowest stage in a river.
Overall, high-water mark is a term used to describe the highest point that water reaches in a particular body of water, whether it's a sea, lake, or river.