1
as in canal
a passageway for water
A fallen tree branch was floating down the river.
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in stream
an overwhelming flow or rush of something
Jet streams can be thought of as giant rivers of air that circulate around the globe. He was overwhelmed by the river of new information that the document dump provided.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of river
Judge after judge ordered the federal government to use less water for making electricity and instead let more of the river spill through the dams’ floodgates so that fish could more safely ride the current past them.
—
Tony Schick, ProPublica, 13 June 2025
As night settled across Portugal, a small furry creature swam along a river, dragging around branches and leaves.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 13 June 2025
The river, 113 miles long, starts in the Coast Range in Trinity County, runs through Humboldt County and empties into the ocean north of Arcata.
—Eureka Times-Standard, Mercury News, 13 June 2025
The proud dad can also be seen posing with his son in front of a river and a boat floating down the canal in Amsterdam.
—Hannah Sacks, People.com, 4 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for river
Tony Schick, ProPublica, 13 June 2025
As night settled across Portugal, a small furry creature swam along a river, dragging around branches and leaves.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 13 June 2025
The river, 113 miles long, starts in the Coast Range in Trinity County, runs through Humboldt County and empties into the ocean north of Arcata.
—Eureka Times-Standard, Mercury News, 13 June 2025
The proud dad can also be seen posing with his son in front of a river and a boat floating down the canal in Amsterdam.
—Hannah Sacks, People.com, 4 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for river
Recent Examples of Synonyms for river
Noun
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From January through May, the stretch generated double-digit growth for container shipping sailings from the year prior, both northbound and southbound through the canal.—
Glenn Taylor,
Sourcing Journal,
5 June 2025
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By 1903, irrigation canals that funneled snowmelt from the Cascade Mountains were dug in the eastern part of the state, and in 1914, vineyards that are now considered historically important were planted in Yakima Valley; the most notable is W.B. Bridgman in Sunnyside.—
Mike DeSimone,
Robb Report,
3 June 2025
Noun
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Sources familiar with the Miami push confirm that FAU looks like the preferred choice, and there’s an effort to pitch the downtown site as a satellite location aimed at Miami’s steady stream of vacationers and business travelers.—
Douglas Hanks,
Miami Herald,
6 June 2025
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There is currently an Earth-facing coronal hole on the sun — a large hole in its atmosphere where magnetic fields can escape — that is creating a fast-moving and turbulent stream of solar wind to move in the direction of Earth.—
Jamie Carter,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2025
Noun
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The Baltic Sea has relatively narrow waterways, where international maritime boundaries extend 12 miles from the coast, and Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) incorporate valuable fishing grounds or offshore wind farms.—
David Mac Dougall,
FOXNews.com,
8 June 2025
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Summer nights bring bioluminescent kayaking tours in intercoastal waterways.—
Kelsey Glennon,
Southern Living,
8 June 2025
Noun
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But amid the worries about bridge collapses and floods and species extinction and famine, a teacher named Marty Anderson (Chiwetel Ejiofor) primarily spends his time trying to calm his students and their parents about the fact that the internet is down.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
6 June 2025
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Still, the country is doubling down on manufacturing, and this production overdrive is rippling through global markets, stirring anxiety in Asia that a flood of cheap imports could squeeze local industries, experts said.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
6 June 2025
Noun
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Younis: The Khan Younis refugee camp is a dense, gray, concrete shantytown, the black waters from sewers running in thin rivulets down the middle of alleys.—
Chris Hedges,
Harpers Magazine,
15 June 2024
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The body meld transforms into a mind meld near the end, when each woman shoots streams of shiny water from their eyes, with the separate rivulets crashing into each other to form a floating, fiery disco ball heart.—
Gil Kaufman,
Billboard,
10 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Espinosa, who only assumed leadership of the Japanese automaker in April, faces an uphill battle to change the tide of Nissan's whittled down fortunes.—
Ruxandra Iordache,Sam Meredith,
CNBC,
4 June 2025
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But now, the sight of American airplanes over Manila signaled a shift in the tide of war.—
Jeff Langholz,
Sun Sentinel,
25 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“River.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/river. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.
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