How to say "dam" in Japanese

• ダムJLPT N2approx.Common
  nounCovers 'dam' in its most familiar sense: a large barrier built across a river to hold back water. Think of the big dams that form reservoirs or generate hydroelectric power.
  大雨おおあめのためにダムが決壊けっかいした。↗

  The dam burst owing to the heavy rain.
• 堰せきCommon
  nounChiefly a weir or sluice: a lower barrier across a river to raise the water level or divert the flow. It matches 'dam' only for such low structures; a full-scale dam is ダム.

Use 「ダム」 for dams in the usual English sense—large barriers holding back water—while 堰 covers weirs and sluices, lower barriers built to raise or divert a river's flow.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• ダムdam
• 堰せきdam
• 堰堤えんていdam