waterworks / water treatment plant
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waterworks
A technical facility where drinking water is treated from raw water, such as groundwater or river water, and fed into the public supply network.
Das örtliche Wasserwerk garantiert eine hohe Qualität des Trinkwassers.
The local waterworks guarantees high-quality drinking water.
The word is made up of 'Wasser' (water) and 'Werk' (plant / works). The component '-werk' means 'factory' or 'facility' in this context. So a 'Wasserwerk' (waterworks) is literally a 'water factory'.
Das neue Wasserwerk versorgt die gesamte Region mit sauberem Trinkwasser.
The new waterworks supplies the entire region with clean drinking water.
The ending '-werk' is used for many types of industrial and utility facilities. If you recognize this structure, you can also understand other words more easily, such as 'Heizwerk' (heating plant), 'Klärwerk' (sewage treatment plant), or 'Kraftwerk' (power plant).
Das Kraftwerk an der Küste erzeugt Strom aus Windenergie.
The power plant on the coast generates electricity from wind energy.
Careful: in English, 'waterworks' can colloquially mean 'crying' or 'tears'. The German 'Wasserwerk' refers only to the technical facility for water treatment and never has this figurative meaning.
Eine Führung durch das Wasserwerk ist für Schulklassen sehr interessant.
A tour of the waterworks is very interesting for school classes.
