River Meaning
/ˈɹɪvəː/Definition, CEFR level A1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA large and often winding stream which drains a land mass, carrying water down from higher areas to a lower point, oftentimes ending in another body of water, such as an ocean or in an inland sea.
nounAny large flow of a liquid in a single body.
Sentence Examples
Can you swim across the river?
It is dangerous for you to swim in this river.
Eventually we came to the mouth of the River Thames.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The fast-flowing ____ cut deep through the canyon over millions of years.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ flooded its banks after three days of continuous heavy rain, inundating dozens of homes.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English ryver, from Anglo-Norman rivere, from Early Medieval Latin rīpāria (“littoral, riverbank”), from Latin rīpārius (“of a riverbank”), from Latin rīpa (“river bank”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁reyp- (“to scratch, tear, cut”). Unrelated to Latin rīvus (“stream”) (whence rival, derive). Doublet of riviera and rivière. Displaced native Old English ēa.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"By the side of the river he trotted as one trots, when very small, by the side of a man who holds one spell-bound by exciting stories; and when tired at last, he sat on the bank, while the river still chattered on to him, a babbling procession of the best stories in the world, sent from the heart of the earth to be told at last to the insatiable sea."
— 1908 October, Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC:
"Floods in northern India, mostly in the small state of Uttarakhand, have wrought disaster on an enormous scale. The early, intense onset of the monsoon on June 14th swelled rivers, washing away roads, bridges, hotels and even whole villages. Rock-filled torrents smashed vehicles and homes, burying victims under rubble and sludge."
— 2013 June 29, “High and wet”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8842, page 28:
"He called instantly but was too ashamed to show until the river."
— 2017, Nathan Schwiethale, Ace High: Mastering Low Stakes Poker Cash Games, page 70:
"Apparently, early in the day, a journalist had decided to bring up his brother River Phoenix's death in his interview, which threw him off and trainwrecked the day for everyone, including me."
— 2017, Carrie Keagan, Dibs Baer, Everybody Curses, I Swear!: Uncensored Tales from the Hollywood Trenches, Macmillan, →ISBN, page 131:
Explore More A1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The fast-flowing ____ cut deep through the canyon over millions of years.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ flooded its banks after three days of continuous heavy rain, inundating dozens of homes.