as in milestones
a point in a chain of events at which an important change (as in one's fortunes) occurs
a watershed moment in her life came when she inherited a reasonable sum of money and was able to start her own coffee shop
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Recent Examples of watersheds
Each year, Heal the Bay collects trash from beaches and watersheds across Los Angeles County with the help of thousands of volunteers.
—
Cbs La Staff, CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026
Without rain in the forecast for the next seven days, the extreme drought that has gripped the Interstate 35 corridor, including the Austin metro area, parts of the Texas Hill Country and much of the region's watersheds is likely to not only persist but also intensify.
—Roberto Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 21 Mar. 2026
Mallard Creek is one of the largest watersheds in the county.
—Charlotte Observer, 11 Mar. 2026
While local watersheds may still recover after wet years, the Colorado River has less room to rebound.
—Hayleigh Evans, AZCentral.com, 2 Mar. 2026
Two wolves roamed separately into the southern end of Colorado’s Front Range mountains in February, passing through watersheds west of Pueblo and Colorado Springs, a map released Wednesday by Colorado Parks and Wildlife shows.
—Elise Schmelzer, Denver Post, 25 Feb. 2026
River rafting and tubing can be more adventurous with fuller watersheds during these months, but the scenery blooms bright green and is more stunning than ever.
—Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 30 Jan. 2026
The problem is that gauges are unevenly distributed across the planet, and some of the places where better monitoring matters most — remote regions, fast-changing watersheds, politically complex borders — are often the hardest to measure consistently.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Under his leadership, the paper led a long and ultimately successful fight to end the rapacious practice of hydraulic mining that literally destroyed mountains and ruined Central Valley watersheds.
—Seán McMahon, Sacbee.com, 23 Jan. 2026
Cbs La Staff, CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026
Without rain in the forecast for the next seven days, the extreme drought that has gripped the Interstate 35 corridor, including the Austin metro area, parts of the Texas Hill Country and much of the region's watersheds is likely to not only persist but also intensify.
—Roberto Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 21 Mar. 2026
Mallard Creek is one of the largest watersheds in the county.
—Charlotte Observer, 11 Mar. 2026
While local watersheds may still recover after wet years, the Colorado River has less room to rebound.
—Hayleigh Evans, AZCentral.com, 2 Mar. 2026
Two wolves roamed separately into the southern end of Colorado’s Front Range mountains in February, passing through watersheds west of Pueblo and Colorado Springs, a map released Wednesday by Colorado Parks and Wildlife shows.
—Elise Schmelzer, Denver Post, 25 Feb. 2026
River rafting and tubing can be more adventurous with fuller watersheds during these months, but the scenery blooms bright green and is more stunning than ever.
—Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 30 Jan. 2026
The problem is that gauges are unevenly distributed across the planet, and some of the places where better monitoring matters most — remote regions, fast-changing watersheds, politically complex borders — are often the hardest to measure consistently.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Under his leadership, the paper led a long and ultimately successful fight to end the rapacious practice of hydraulic mining that literally destroyed mountains and ruined Central Valley watersheds.
—Seán McMahon, Sacbee.com, 23 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for watersheds
Noun
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Now Tomasso carves out time every month to handwrite letters to workers, like cooks and dishwashers, who are celebrating major career milestones.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Other milestones include higher qubit counts — which increase the potential size and complexity of problems a quantum computer can represent and help solve — and coherence times, which allow more reliable computations by reducing the impact of noise and errors.—
Dylan Butts,Matthew Chin,
CNBC,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Pilots learn to navigate using maps and compasses, as well as natural cues such as stars and terrain features including rivers, bridges and other landmarks to orient themselves and move toward friendly forces.—
Luis Martinez,
ABC News,
3 Apr. 2026
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The estate’s recognition alongside other national landmarks speaks to western North Carolina’s growing influence as a tourism destination — one that Charlotte-area travelers have long known about.—
Lauren Schuster,
Charlotte Observer,
3 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Anderson is here for the melodrama, the special lessons and the climaxes that fall flat.—
Jessica Lipsky,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
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The band has never sounded this melodic before; Wroth in particular brings a constant dynamism to his guitar solos, often layering two and reaching climaxes that refuse to collapse into just a flurry of notes, building off Phantom Slaughter’s keyboard melodies with a real sense of drama.—
Sam Goldner,
Pitchfork,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
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With runners on the corners and two outs, Bichette lined a single to right, and Carson Benge scored easily.—
Abbey Mastracco,
New York Daily News,
31 Mar. 2026
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In its final form, though, the change — 8 to 10 feet closer in the corners with the gaps tapering toward a still 410-foot centerfield — certainly doesn’t appear overwhelming.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Watersheds.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/watersheds. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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