Definition

1. Noun:
   • A faint design or symbol pressed into paper during its production: This distinguishing mark is typically visible only when the paper is held up to light. It is used to identify the paper's maker, quality, or authenticity.
   • A line or mark indicating the highest or lowest level reached by a body of water: This mark shows the water level, such as on a riverbank, beach, or the hull of a ship, often left by a flood or tide.

Examples of Usage

• Noun (Paper):
  • The stationery had an elegant watermark of a lion.
  • To check if the banknote is genuine, hold it up to the light and look for the watermark.
• Noun (Water Level):
  • The high watermark on the pier showed how far the storm surge had reached.
  • We could see the watermark left by the receding flood on the walls of the basement.

Advanced Usage

• "Digital watermark": A digital code embedded in a file (like an image, audio, or video) to identify its copyright owner or track its use.
  • The photographer added a subtle digital watermark to protect his images online.
• "To reach a high watermark": An idiom meaning to achieve the highest point of success, quality, or intensity.
  • Her latest novel is considered the high watermark of her literary career.

Variants and Related Words

• Watermarked (adjective): Describing paper or a digital file that bears a watermark.
  • The document was printed on watermarked paper for security.

Synonyms

• Impression (for paper mark).
• Tide mark or waterline (for water level mark).

Related Idioms

• "High-water mark": The peak or climax of something.
  • The concert was the high-water mark of the festival.
• "Low-water mark": The lowest point or level of something.
  • The team's performance hit a low-water mark during that disastrous season.

Noun

1. a distinguishing mark impressed on paper during manufacture; visible when paper is held up to the light
2. a line marking the level reached by a body of water