Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Freshet

Freshet , noun

[Old English fresche flood + -et. See Fresh, a.]

1.
A stream of fresh water. [Obsolete] — Milton
2.
A flood or overflowing of a stream caused by heavy rains or melted snow; a sudden inundation.
Cracked the sky, as ice in rivers When the freshet is at highest. — Longfellow