river
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++LDOCE 5++riv·er /ˈrɪvə $ -ər/ ●●● S2 W2 noun [countable] 1 SGa natural and continuous flow of water in a long line across a country into the sea 江，河 → stream the Mississippi River 密西西比河 the River Thames 泰晤士河on a river There were several boats on the river. 河上有几条小船。along a river We went for a walk along the river. 我们沿着河边散步。up/down (a) river a ship sailing up river 逆流而上的船 They drifted slowly down river. 他们慢慢地顺流而下。across a river a bridge across the river 跨河的一座桥 →4 See picture on 见图 Page A4 Country 乡间5 ► Be careful about word order with river names – you say the River Thames, the River Nile, the River Amazon etc, but the Hudson River, the Mississippi River etc.要注意河流名称的词序 – 可以说 the River Thames， the River Nile， the River Amazon etc， 但以下河流要说成 the Hudson River， the Mississippi River etc。2 LIQUIDa large amount of moving liquid 巨流river of a river of hot lava flowing from the volcano 从火山涌出的炽热熔岩流 → sell somebody down the river at sell1n GRAMMAR: Patterns with riverin the river• You use in the river to talk about things that happen in the water: In summer we swim in the river.There was something floating in the river. on the river• You use on the river to talk about things that happen on the surface of a river or very close to the edge of a river: We went boating on the river.There’s a nice pub on the river.along the river• You use along the river to talk about things that happen on land next to a river: They strolled along the river.There are houses built all along the river.n USAGE: Word order with names of rivers• In Britain and Europe, the name usually comes after the word ‘river’. You usually say: the River Thames 泰晤士河, the River Seine, the River Rhone, the River Nile, the River Ganges.• In the US and outside Europe, the name usually comes before the word ‘river’. You usually say: the Yangtze River, the Amazon River, the Congo River, the Hudson River, the Mississippi River 密西西比河, the Colorado River. COLLOCATIONSverbsa river flows 河水流淌The River Avon flows through the town of Stratford. 埃文河流经斯特拉特福小镇。a river runs (=it flows in a particular direction) 河水流淌the place where the river runs into the sea 这条河的入海口a river winds (=it turns and curves, rather than going in a straight line) 河流蜿蜒He could see the river winding across the plain. 他看见河流蜿蜒穿过平原。a river floods 河水泛滥nThere are fears that the river could flood.a river dries up 河水干涸nFurther downstream the river has dried up completely several times in recent years. a river narrows (=it becomes narrower) 河道变窄nThe river narrows at this point.a river rises somewhere formal (=it starts there) 河流发源于某地nThe River Euphrates rises in Turkey and flows through Syria.cross a river 过河nCross 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) 涉水过河nThe water was shallow enough for us to be able to ford the river. navigate a river (=travel along a river in a boat) 沿河航行nThe narrow cliffs once made the river dangerous to navigate. adjectiveswide/broad 宽的We crossed the wide River Rhone the following morning. 第二天早上，我们渡过了宽阔的罗讷河。long 长的The Severn is the longest river in Britain. 塞文河是英国最长的河流。swollen/high (=containing more water than usual) 上涨的After the rains, the river was swollen. 雨后河水上涨。nThe river was high and running quite swiftly.fast-flowing 湍急的The child fell into a fast-flowing river. 那个孩子掉进了湍急的河水中。a mighty river (=very big and impressive) 浩荡的河流Cairo sits at the mouth of the mighty river Nile. 开罗位于浩荡的尼罗河的河口。a river is navigable (=people are able to travel along it in a boat) 河流可通航nThe river is navigable in the winter months.river + NOUNthe river bank 河岸Crowds lined the river banks to watch the boat race. 人群站在河两岸观看划船比赛。a river bed (=the bottom of a river) 河床nThey walked along a dry river bed.a river valley 河谷nThey came to a wide river valley.phrasesthe banks of a river (=the land near a river) 河（两）岸He bought a house on the banks of the River Wye. 他在瓦伊河岸边买了一栋房子。the mouth of a river (=where it joins the sea) 河口The Statue of Liberty stands at the mouth of the Hudson River. 自由女神像坐落在哈得孙河河口。the source of a river (=the place where it starts) 河的源头nWhere exactly is the source of the River Ganges?the upper/lower etc reaches of a river (=the upper, lower etc parts) 河的上游/下游等nWe sailed down the lower reaches of the river.a bend in a river 河的弯道nHe 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) 河水猛涨nThe snow had just melted and the rivers were in spate.n THESAURUSriver a line of water that flows into the seaThey crossed the river by ferry.the River Tweedthe Yangtze rivertributary a stream or river that flows into a larger riverThe River Trombetas is a tributary of the River Amazon.estuary the wide part of a river where it goes into the seaplans to build a big new airport on the Thames estuarycanal a long passage dug into the ground and filled with water, either for boats to travel along, or to take water to a placeVenice’s famous canalsa canal boatdelta an area of low land where a river spreads into many smaller rivers near the seathe Nile deltaa small riverstream a small narrow rivera cool mountain streambrook literary a small streamThere 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 riverThe River Fal with its many creeks was a perfect place for smugglers.The kids hunted for crabs in the muddy creek.parts of a rivermouth the part of a river where it joins the seaHavre-Marat was a port at the mouth of the River Seine.bank land along the side of a riverthe river bankHe owns a chateau on the banks of the River Loire.source the place where a river or stream startsThe source of the River Nile was discovered by a British explorer, John Speke.
Examples from the Corpus
river• In the dry season, the wonderfully cool river water is a stunning blue-green in the deep pools below the falls.• The toll includes drowned livestock, ruined wheat crops and boats torn from their moorings on rivers around the north state.• The other rivers from the Pennines are roughly the same size.• Transnational oil and mining companies pollute rivers and finance grossly disruptive mines.• He lit one of his Gauloise cigarettes, sat back in his chair, and stared at the river in silence.• A passenger sitting next to me flung a coin into the river with great enthusiasm.• The river was dangerous here, still gnawing at the rim of the path.across a river• Former railroad rights of way cut across river bottoms that used to be littered with bustling towns.• He claimed later to have invented a method of transporting armed men across rivers using pontoons for shoes.river of• The cut caused a small river of blood to flow down his arm.Origin river (1200-1300) Old French rivere, from Latin riparius “of a river bank”, from ripa “bank, shore”riv·er noun →n GRAMMAR1 →n USAGE1
→COLLOCATIONS1 →n THESAURUS1LDOCE OnlineChineseSyllable
→COLLOCATIONS1 →n THESAURUS1LDOCE OnlineChineseSyllable
line in Corpus a natural water a and continuous long of flow
river
riv‧er S2 W2 /ˈrɪvə $ -ər/
noun [countable]
the Mississippi River
the River Thames
on a river
There were several boats on the river.
along a river
We went for a walk along the river.
up/down (a) river
a ship sailing up river
They drifted slowly down river.
across a river
a bridge across the river
► Be careful about word order with river names - you say the River Thames, the River Nile, the River Amazon etc, but the Hudson River, the Mississippi River etc.
2. a large amount of moving liquid
river of
a river of hot lava flowing from the volcano
⇨ sell somebody down the river at sell1(10)
■ 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.
▪ 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.
riv‧er S2 W2 /ˈrɪvə $ -ər/
noun [countable] Date: 1200-1300
Language: Old French
Origin: rivere, from Latin riparius 'of a river bank', from ripa 'bank, shore'
1. a natural and continuous flow of water in a long line across a country into the sea ⇨ stream:Language: Old French
Origin: rivere, from Latin riparius 'of a river bank', from ripa 'bank, shore'
on a river
along a river
up/down (a) river
across a river
► Be careful about word order with river names - you say the River Thames, the River Nile, the River Amazon etc, but the Hudson River, the Mississippi River etc.
2. a large amount of moving liquid
river of
⇨ sell somebody down the river at sell1(10)
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