river

noun

riv·​er ˈri-vər 

often attributive

1

a

: a natural stream of water of usually considerable volume

b

: watercourse

2

a

: something resembling a river

a river of lava

b

rivers plural : large or overwhelming quantities

drank rivers of coffee

Phrases

up the river

: to or in prison

was sent up the river

Examples of river in a Sentence

The raft is too small to use on this part of the river.

Rivers of mud flowed down the hillside.

Recent Examples on the Web

The crash resulted in an explosion, and the plane plummeted into the river below. —Rachel Raposas, People.com, 3 Feb. 2025

Officials have been at the debris site in the river since shortly after the collision between a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter and a Bombardier CRJ700 airliner operating under PSA Airlines, a subsidiary of American Airlines. —Andrea Margolis, Fox News, 3 Feb. 2025

The fuselage was found upside down in three sections in the river, which is about 8 feet deep in some areas. —Alaa Elassar, CNN, 2 Feb. 2025

The crunch of Casper’s tires on the road; my low-key vigilance about him veering into the frigid river below. —Chris Colin, AFAR Media, 31 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English rivere, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *riparia, from Latin, feminine of riparius riparian, from ripa bank, shore; perhaps akin to Greek ereipein to tear down

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing river

• atmospheric river
• down the river
• mouth of the river
• river blindness
• river dolphin
• river duck
• river horse
• river mouth
• river otter
• river's mouth
• sell down the river

Kids Definition

river

noun

riv·​er ˈriv-ər 

1

: a natural stream of water larger than a brook or creek

2

: a large stream or flow

the jet stream is a river of air

Etymology

Middle English rivere "river," from early French rivere (same meaning), derived from Latin riparius "related to or located on the bank of a river," from ripa "shore"