FLOOD PLAIN, ALSO FLOODPLAIN

(1) A strip of relatively smooth land bordering a stream, built of sediment carried by the stream and dropped in the slack water beyond the influence of the swiftest current. It is called a Living Flood Plain if it is overflowed in times of high water but a Fossil Flood Plain if it is beyond the reach of the highest flood. (2) The lowland that borders a stream or river, usually dry but subject to flooding. (3) That land outside of a stream channel described by the perimeter of the Maximum Probable Flood. Also referred to as a Flood-Prone Area.