noun · neutral
sewage
/ˈsuː.ɪdʒ/SEW·age
Band 5-6speakingtask1task2
waste water and human excrement that is carried away in sewers
Examples
“After the storm, raw sewage overflowed into the river.”
“The city upgraded its sewage treatment plant last year.”
“Sewage contamination can cause serious health problems in local communities.”
Band 8 sentence
“Inadequate sewage infrastructure in peri‑urban areas often leads to contamination of local water sources and outbreaks of disease.”
Collocations
- sewage treatment
- raw sewage
- discharge sewage into
Word family
sewage noun (uncountable)sewer noun (the pipe)
Common mistakes
Many seweges were released into the river.→Much sewage was released into the river.
Say it for a higher band
5dirty water→6sewer→7+sewage
Synonyms
wastewater
Easily confused
sewer
“The city's sewers were blocked during the storm.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In Environment & Climate
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