seawater

An heirloom is something passed down in a family for generations. Your grandma's prized necklace could be an heirloom.

If you know that an heir is a younger person in a family who will inherit things when relatives die, you have a clue to the meaning of heirloom. An heirloom is a special thing that's handed down, sometimes through a will, but often just from person to person. A portrait of an ancestor could be an heirloom. Many families pass down heirloom jewelry.

When you don't tell the truth, you lie. You also lie down when you're sleepy and wonder what lies ahead of you.

If we leave aside the lie that is an untruth, most meanings of lie are related. If something lies ahead of us, then it's there, down the road, waiting for us. If mountains lie to the east, we can think of them as having settled down there. If something lies unused, it is just sort of left to lie on the shelf (or wherever). If you let a sleeping dog lie, you're just letting him be right where he is — in the same position.

Seawater is water from the ocean that's all around our coasts and islands. This word has no related meanings as 'seas' do; it refers specifically to saltwater.

We use seawater when talking about things like swimming, fishing, or sailing. You might hear people say, "I went for a swim in the seawater yesterday" or "The boat drifted into seawater during the storm." Seawater can be calm and beautiful, but also strong and powerful, especially if there's a big wave coming towards you.