reservoir

Etymology

From French réservoir (“collection place”) (fig.), réservoir (“storehouse”) (lit.). in turn from French réserver (“to reserve, keep”).

noun

1. A place where anything is kept in store.
   Within a printer cartridge, ink is typically stored in an ink reservoir and is deposited onto media through a print head. 2013, Siloxanes—Advances in Research and Application, page 42
2. A large natural or artificial lake used as a source of water supply.
3. A small intercellular space, often containing resin, essential oil, or some other secreted matter.
4. A supply or source of something.
   To replace them and also to provide a reservoir for relief trains, a certain amount of spare stock must be kept on hand. 1962 September, Warren Smith, “The problems of coaching stock rostering and operation”, in Modern Railways, page 200
   The goal is to draw on reservoirs of strength that defy rational thought, so you can wrench your poor, obsessed spirit away from work and orient it toward stuff that matters. 2007 November, Gil Schwartz, “Escape from the job monster”, in Men's Health, volume 22, number 9, →ISSN, page 122
5. A species that acts as host to a zoonosis when it is not causing acute illness in other susceptible species.
   Bats host many high-profile viruses that can infect humans, including severe acute respiratory syndrome and Ebola. A recent study explored the ecological variables that may contribute to bats’ propensity to harbor such zoonotic diseases by comparing them with another order of common reservoir hosts: rodents. 2013 May-June, Katie L. Burke, “In the News”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, page 193
6. (computing) A "black box" component that receives an input signal to be read out and mapped by another process, as part of reservoir computing.

verb

1. (transitive) To store or keep (something) in or as in a reservoir.