1
general::
river
verbs
a river flows
• The River Avon flows through the town of Stratford.
a river runs
(= it flows in a particular direction )
• the place where the river runs into the sea
a river winds
(= it turns and curves, rather than going in a straight line )
• He could see the river winding across the plain.
a river floods
• There are fears that the river could flood.
a river dries up
• Further downstream the river has dried up completely several times in recent years.
a river narrows
(= it becomes narrower )
• The river narrows at this point.
a river rises somewhere
formal (= it starts there )
• The River Euphrates rises in Turkey and flows through Syria.
cross a river
• Cross the river by the road bridge and then turn right.
ford a river
(= cross a river on foot, in a vehicle, or on a horse, without using a bridge )
• The water was shallow enough for us to be able to ford the river.
navigate a river
(= to travel along a river )
• The narrow cliffs once made the river dangerous to navigate.
adjectives
wide/broad
• We crossed the wide River Rhone the following morning.
long
• The Severn is the longest river in Britain.
swollen/high
(= containing more water than usual )
• After the rains, the river was swollen. • The river was high and running quite swiftly.
fast-flowing
• The child fell into a fast-flowing river.
a mighty river
(= very big and impressive )
• Cairo sits at the mouth of the mighty river Nile.
a river is navigable
(= people are able to travel along it in a boat )
• The river is navigable in the winter months.
river + NOUN
the river bank
• Crowds lined the river banks to watch the boat race.
a river bed
(= the bottom of a river )
• They walked along a dry river bed.
a river valley
• They came to a wide river valley.
phrases
the banks of a river
(= the land near a river )
• He bought a house on the banks of the River Wye.
the mouth of a river
(= where it joins the sea )
• The Statue of Liberty stands at the mouth of the Hudson River.
the source of a river
(= the place where it starts )
• Where exactly is the source of the River Ganges?
the upper/lower etc reaches of a river
(= the upper, lower etc parts )
• We sailed down the lower reaches of the river.
a bend in a river
• He rounded a bend in the river and saw Flora sitting there.
a river is in spate
British English (= it is very full and the water is flowing very quickly )
• The snow had just melted and the rivers were in spate.
transnet.ir
2
general::
river
a line of water that flows into the sea:
• They crossed the river by ferry. • the River Tweed • the Yangtze river
tributary
a stream or river that flows into a larger river:
• The River Trombetas is a tributary of the River Amazon.
estuary
the wide part of a river where it goes into the sea:
• plans to build a big new airport on the Thames estuary
canal
a long passage dug into the ground and filled with water, either for boats to travel along, or to take water to a place:
• Venice’s famous canals • a canal boat
delta
an area of low land where a river spreads into many smaller rivers near the sea:
• the Nile delta
a small river
stream
a small narrow river:
• a cool mountain stream
brook
literary a small stream:
• There was a small brook, rushing and sparkling along between green banks.
creek
a narrow area of sea that goes into the land, or a small river:
• The River Fal with its many creeks was a perfect place for smugglers. • The kids hunted for crabs in the muddy creek.
parts of a river
mouth
the part of a river where it joins the sea:
• Havre-Marat was a port at the mouth of the River Seine.
bank
land along the side of a river:
• the river bank • He owns a chateau on the banks of the River Loire.
source
the place where a river or stream starts:
• The source of the River Nile was discovered by a British explorer, John Speke.
Longman-Thesaurus
5
general::
noun ADJ. broad, great, large, long, mighty, wide the mighty River Nile The river was too wide to swim across comfortably. | little, narrow, short, small | deep | shallow | high The river is still high after the recent rain. | low | fast-flowing | slow-moving, sluggish | winding | swollen The river was swollen after the floods. | navigable The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. VERB + RIVER cross, ford, get across We crossed the river by ferry. How are we going to get across the river? | bridge They've bridged the river at four points. | dam Wildlife groups are protesting against the proposal to dam the river. | dredge They're dredging the river to make it safer for larger boats. | navigate The rocks and sandbanks make the river hard to navigate. RIVER + VERB flow, run, wind This river flows into the Mediterranean Sea. A river runs through the field. The river winds its way through the hills. | rise The river has risen with the rains. The river rises in Bulgaria and flows through Greece to the Aegean. | be in flood, burst its banks, flood (sth), overflow sth The river had overflowed its banks. | dry up This river dried up long ago. RIVER + NOUN bank | water | valley | system | crossing | traffic PREP. across a/the ~ There's a bridge across the river. | along a/the ~ We walked along the river. | down a/the ~, down by a/the ~, down to a/the ~ Let's go down to the river at sunset. | into a/the ~ He dived into the river. | in a/the ~ Trout live in this river. | on a/the ~ There was a rowing boat on the river. | up a/the ~ sailing up the river | ~ of (figurative) a river of lava PHRASES the banks/bottom/middle/side/surface of a river They were waiting for us on the other side of the river. | a bend in the river, the course/direction of a river, the river's edge
Oxford Collocations Dictionary