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n. 1. a. An artificial channel for conducting water, with a valve or gate to regulate the flow: sluices connecting a reservoir with irrigated fields. b. A valve or gate used in such a channel; a floodgate: open sluices to flood a dry dock. Also called sluice gate. 2. A body of water impounded behind a floodgate. 3. A sluiceway. 4. A long inclined trough, as for carrying logs or separating gold ore. v. sluiced, sluic·ing, sluic·es v.tr. 1. To flood or drench with or as if with a flow of released water. 2. To wash with water flowing in a sluice: sluicing sediment for gold. 3. To draw off or let out by a sluice: sluice floodwater. 4. To send (logs, for example) down a sluice. v.intr. To flow out from or as if from a sluice. [Middle English scluse, from Old French escluse, from Late Latin exclūsa, from Latin, feminine past participle of exclūdere, to shut out; see EXCLUDE.] |
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