Lake

Lakes are bodies of liquids that are limited in size. In Minecraft, lake-like formations can be generated by a variety of biomes, features and terrain features, that are often mistakenly called "lakes", despite that there is no single cause for their generation.

The following biomes, features or terrain features are commonly referred to as "lakes":

• A small 👁 Image
  ocean biome surrounded by land on all sides.
• A wide section of a 👁 Image
  river biome.

• 👁 A small ocean biome resembling a lake.
  
  A small ocean biome resembling a lake.
• 👁 A wide river biome resembling a lake.
  
  A wide river biome resembling a lake.

• 👁 Image
  Lava lakes, small pools of lava that generate in the Overworld above Y=0.
• 👁 Image
  Deltas, one-block-deep sheets of constrained lava found in 👁 Image
  basalt deltas biomes in the Nether.
• 👁 EnvSprite leaf-clay.png: Sprite image for leaf-clay in Minecraft
  Clay pools, shallow water pools surrounded by clay found in 👁 Image
  lush caves biomes.

• 👁 A lava lake.
  
  A lava lake.
• 👁 Deltas in a basalt deltas biome.
  
  Deltas in a basalt deltas biome.
• 👁 The "Lush Caves" seed template, featuring clay pools with an axolotl.
  
  The "Lush Caves" seed template, featuring clay pools with an axolotl.

• A 👁 EnvSprite large-lake.png: Sprite image for large-lake in Minecraft
  large lake, where the terrain generates below the local water level in a non-aquatic biome.
• An 👁 Image
  aquifer, which fills caves with water at different levels, creating underground lakes.
• A 👁 EnvSprite lava-aquifer.png: Sprite image for lava-aquifer in Minecraft
  lava aquifer, which fills certain caves with lava below Y=0, creating underground lava lakes.
• 👁 Image
  Lava sea, which fills everywhere below Y=32 with lava in the Nether.

• 👁 A large lake in a flower forest biome.
  
  A large lake in a flower forest biome.
• 👁 A water aquifer on the surface, resembling a lake.
  
  A water aquifer on the surface, resembling a lake.
• 👁 A water aquifer and a lava aquifer.
  
  A water aquifer and a lava aquifer.
• 👁 The lava sea in the Nether.
  
  The lava sea in the Nether.

• 👁 Image
  Water lake, a small body of water that abundantly generated at any altitude in the Overworld.
• 👁 Image
  Desert lakes, a variant of the 👁 Image
  desert biome where large lakes are generated more frequently.

• 👁 An old underground water lake.
  
  An old underground water lake.
• 👁 The removed desert lakes biome, featuring many large lakes.
  
  The removed desert lakes biome, featuring many large lakes.