A temporary dam or water barrier built to prevent water from flowing into an area during construction or repair work, especially in water management projects.
From French 'batardeau,' combining 'bâtard' (bastard, irregular) with the suffix '-eau' (water), creating a term for a temporary, irregular water dam structure.
Engineers use batardeaux to 'dry' underwater construction sites—they're temporary walls that let humans work on bridges, dams, and tunnels that would normally be submerged, like draining a swimming pool to fix the deep end.
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