An
arroyo (; , "brook"), also called a
wash, is a dry
creek,
stream bed or
gulch that temporarily or seasonally fills and flows after sufficient
rain.
Flash floods are common in arroyos following thunderstorms. In Latin America any small river might be called an
arroyo, even if it flows continually all year and is never dry. The Arabic terms
rambla or
wadi are used in
North Africa and
Southwest Asia.