Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[nawee]

Hello,

I found the phrase "flood waters" in a newspaper. Why does "water" have "-s" when it is normally uncountable? What does "waters" when it is countable?

Thank you.

Nawee

[pugachevV]

It's used incorrectly.
The word, flood means an overflow of water onto dry land. You don't need water (or waters) in there at all.
You use waters to describe an area of the sea regarded as being under the jurisdiction of a particular country.
Chinese waters, Canadian waters, International waters (for instance).