tributary

noun trib·u·tary \ ˈtri-byə-ˌter-ē \

Updated on: 13 Apr 2018

Definition of tributary

plural tributaries

1 : a stream feeding a larger stream or a lake

2 : a ruler or state that pays tribute to a conqueror

See tributary defined for English-language learners

Examples of tributary in a Sentence

one of the river's tributaries
This stream is a tributary of the Ohio River.

Recent Examples of tributary from the Web

In another case, Kinnamon Ridge Dairy in Sauk County is paying $25,000, in five payments spaced over two years after DNR personnel saw animal waste spilling over out of manure storage lagoon, contaminating a tributary of the Little Baraboo River.

— lee bergquist, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Brad Schimel: Dairy farms, other polluters pay more than $225,000 in Wisconsin environmental fines," 6 Apr. 2018
The increase started to become apparent about 150 years ago, which the authors note is about the same time that intensive agriculture in the areas surrounding the Mississippi and its tributaries picked up.

— john timmer, Ars Technica, "500 years of Mississippi flood data shows things have gotten worse," 5 Apr. 2018
From the foot of the Capitol to the White House more than a mile west, Pennsylvania Avenue and its tributaries were mobbed with demonstrators.

— Time, "Here's the Size of the March For Our Lives Crowd in Washington," 24 Mar. 2018
The only road map scientists have to help them cure cancer looks like one of those early renderings of the Amazon River, all questionable tributaries and threatening blank spaces.

— jacqueline detwiler, Popular Mechanics, "One Guy With a Supercomputer Who's Chasing the Causes of Cancer," 19 Mar. 2018
It also could have reviewed how both counties warn residents of incoming floodwaters along the San Jacinto and its tributaries, including Cypress Creek and Spring Creek.

— mihir zaveri, Houston Chronicle, "Texas water board withdraws application for $1.8M grants for flood planning," 15 Mar. 2018
The proposed Six Bridge Trail would connect parks and other landmarks in eastern Towson along the Herring Run tributary.

— libby solomon, baltimoresun.com, "Blue Water Baltimore to conduct study for Herring Run stormwater project in Towson," 21 Mar. 2018
The annual spring run of white bass is on in creeks leading into the TVA lakes, with Paint Rock and Flint rivers, tributaries of upper Wheeler Lake, good spots to start looking.

— frank sargeant, AL.com, "White bass, wild turkeys and red snapper in the outdoor news," 21 Mar. 2018
Bob was a life-long bass and trout fisherman, fishing the fresh waters of Bantam Lake and its tributaries, Mamanasco Lake & Lake Lillinonah and the Moodus Resevoir with his fishing buddies and his son, Bill.

— courant.com, "Robert F. Braychak," 20 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tributary.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

A tributary was originally a person or state that owed tribute to a more powerful person or state. Ancient China, for instance, had dozens of tributary states, and the emperor would receive elephants from Siam or young girls from Korea as tribute. Just as a smaller power gave some of its wealth to a larger power, a small river contributes its waters to a larger one. A tributary can be a tiny stream, but some are immense rivers. The Missouri River, for example, could be called a tributary to the Mississippi, even though it's about 2,500 miles long and receives hundreds of tributaries itself.

First Known Use of tributary

14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 2

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tributary Synonyms

tributary

adjective

Definition of tributary

1 : paying tribute to another to acknowledge submission, to obtain protection, or to purchase peace : subject

2 : paid or owed as tribute

tributary gifts

3 : channeling material or supplies into something more inclusive : contributory

See tributary defined for kids

Recent Examples of tributary from the Web

The owners of this 10,000-acre property purchased it on an impulse, then built a house situated on the rimrock of a tributary canyon.

— wsj real estate, WSJ, "Going Up? Incline Elevators Help Hillside Homeowners," 10 Aug. 2017
At Lewis Smith, best bet is to look for striped bass making spawning runs up the tributary rivers--the fish migrate from early March to early April before returning to the depths of the lake for the rest of the year.

— frank sargeant, AL.com, "Friday Fishing Report," 15 Mar. 2018
Testing of the tributary waters that feed the lake has been scaled back; a public water quality board folded; a real-time chemical spill monitoring system in the St. Clair River shuttered through neglect and disinterest.

— keith matheny, Detroit Free Press, "Lake St. Clair: Beach closures, 'nasty stuff' in the water, a problem that doesn't get fixed," 29 Sep. 2017
But in China’s case, that pushback comes not just from the West but also from neighbors who remember the tributary system of its imperial past — or are wary of its Communist political system despite its embrace of capitalism decades ago.

— jane perlez, New York Times, "Xi Jinping Pushes China’s Global Rise Despite Friction and Fear," 22 Oct. 2017
At Lewis Smith, stripers continue the gradual move away from the dam and up into the tributary arms, particularly Rock Creek, Brushy Creek and the Sipsey River areas.

— frank sargeant, AL.com, "Friday Fishing Report," 20 Oct. 2017
Testing of the tributary waters that feed the lake has been scaled back

— keith matheny, Detroit Free Press, "Lake St. Clair: Beach closures, 'nasty stuff' in the water, a problem that doesn't get fixed," 29 Sep. 2017
Visitors are laden with so many tributary gifts that cemetery guards have developed a side business: using luggage carts commandeered from the airport to shuttle offerings from vans to the grave for a small fee.

— tom downey, WSJ, "A Vietnamese Island Group Unspoiled by Tourism," 30 July 2017
After Xi Shi came of age, her native Yue Kingdom was defeated by the neighboring Wu and was forced to become its tributary state.

— jiayang fan, The New Yorker, "China and the Legend of Ivanka," 11 Apr. 2017

First Known Use of tributary

14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Other Geology Terms

anthracite, boulder, cwm, erratic, igneous, intrusive, mesa, sedimentary, silt, swale

TRIBUTARY Defined for English Language Learners

tributary

noun

Definition of tributary for English Language Learners

: a stream that flows into a larger stream or river or into a lake

TRIBUTARY Defined for Kids

tributary

noun trib·u·tary \ ˈtri-byə-ˌter-ē \

Definition of tributary for Students

plural tributaries

: a stream flowing into a larger stream or a lake

The river has several tributaries.

Medical Dictionary

tributary

noun trib·u·tary \ ˈtrib-yə-ˌter-ē \

medical Definition of tributary

plural tributaries

: a vein that empties into a larger vein

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See words that rhyme with tributary Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for tributary Spanish Central: Translation of tributary Nglish: Translation of tributary for Spanish speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about tributary

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tributary

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tributary

Definition of tributary

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TRIBUTARY Defined for English Language Learners

tributary

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tributary

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tributary

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