Describing a river or stream that is completely filled with water, reaching the level of its banks with no overflow.
Compound word from 'bank' (the edge of a river) and 'full' (completely filled). Used in hydrology to describe a river's discharge at capacity.
Hydrologists use 'bankfull' to understand flooding risk—when a river exceeds this level, water spills onto floodplains, which is actually nature's safety valve.
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