WATERFALL, noun [water and fall.] A fall or perpendicular descent of the water of a river or stream, or a descent nearly perpendicular; a cascade; a cataract. But the word is generally used of the fall of a small river or rivulet. It is particularly used to express a cascade in a garden, or an artificial descent of water, designed as an ornament.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI