silts up
Fills with sediment
When a body of water silts up, it gradually fills with silt—fine sediment deposited by flowing water—becoming shallower or blocked: The harbor silted up over the centuries.
The process can render waterways unnavigable or clog irrigation channels.
Figuratively, anything that accumulates gradually and clogs: His arteries had silted up with plaque.
- dredgingExtracting underwater sediment
- alluviumWater-deposited loose sediment
- sedimentationParticles settling in liquid
- erosionGradual wearing away
- depositionFormal testimony under oath
flood control · clogged · water flow · eutrophication · turbidity · river mouth · infill · choked · slow death · soil compaction · desilting · climate change effects · irrigation channels · arteries · desilting