Dike

A dike is an embankment built to keep water from overflowing onto adjacent land. It may be made of earth, rock, concrete, or other materials.

Levee: A raised embankment that confines a river or other water body within its channel. Levees are closely related flood barriers, especially along rivers.
Embankment dam: A dam formed chiefly from compacted earth, rock, or both. Dikes share embankment construction methods with this broader class of water-retaining structures.
Flood control: The management of water and land to reduce damage from flooding. Dikes are one structural measure used to reduce flood exposure.
Netherlands: A country in northwestern Europe with extensive low-lying land protected by water-management infrastructure. Dutch settlement and land use have been shaped by centuries of dike building.
Hydrostatic pressure: The pressure exerted by a fluid at rest, increasing with depth. Water pressure pushes against a dike and rises with water depth.
Dike (geology): A sheet of igneous rock that cuts across pre-existing rock layers. The same word names a geological feature, distinct from a water-control embankment.
Polder: Low-lying land enclosed by dikes and kept dry through drainage and water management. Polders depend on dikes to protect reclaimed land from surrounding water.
1931 China floods: A series of catastrophic floods in China that caused massive loss of life and displacement. Dike failures and overwhelmed defenses contributed to the floods' devastating impacts.
Seepage: The slow movement of water through soil or porous material. Water can pass through or beneath a dike even when its surface stays intact.
Cofferdam: A temporary enclosure that excludes water from a construction area. Unlike a dike, a cofferdam is usually temporary and protects a work site.

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