a ditch or drain, made for the passage of waters.—The word seems formed from the verb to dig; tho' others choose to derive it from the Dutch, dijk, a dam, sea-bank, or wall.

Dyke, also denotes a work of stone, timber or fascines, raised to oppose the entrance or passage of the waters of the sea, a river, lake, or the like.—The word comes from the Flemish dyk, or dijk, a heap of earth to bound or stem the water. Junius and Menage take the Flemish to have borrowed their word from the Greek τεῖχος, wall. Guichard derives it from the Hebrew daghab. These dikes are usually elevations of earth, with hurdles of stakes, stones, and other matters.

The dike of Rochelle is made with vessels fastened to the bottom. The dikes of Holland are frequently broken through, and drown large tracts of land.