There is only one officially named “lake” in the Lake District (Bassenthwaite Lake), but the national park contains around 16 major lakes and 80+ bodies of water (including meres, waters and tarns), depending on how you count them.

Official “lake” vs total

  • Only Bassenthwaite Lake has the word “lake” in its official name, which is why pub quizzes often say there is “just one lake” in the Lake District.
  • Other famous waters such as Windermere, Ullswater and Derwentwater are technically lakes in the physical sense, but are named as “mere” or “water” rather than “lake”.

How many major lakes?

  • Many guides and the national park’s own info talk about 16 primary lakes in the Lake District, covering the largest and best‑known waters (Windermere, Ullswater, Derwentwater, Coniston Water, etc.).
  • Broader counts that include smaller meres, waters, tarns and reservoirs usually put the total at 80 or more distinct bodies of water within the park.

Why the number changes

  • Different sources disagree because some only count the big, named lakes, while others include small high‑fell tarns and man‑made reservoirs.
  • In casual conversation or quizzes you’ll usually hear:
    • “1 lake” = only Bassenthwaite Lake by name
    • “16 lakes” = the main large lakes
    • “80+ lakes/tarns” = almost everything with water in the park.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.