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downstream

American  
[doun-streem] / ˈdaʊnˈstrim /

adverb

  1. with or in the direction of the current of a stream.

adjective

  1. of or relating to the latter part of a process or system.

  2. Genetics. with or in the direction of transcription, translation, or synthesis of a DNA, RNA, or protein molecule.

downstream British  
/ ˈdaʊnˈstriːm /

adverb

  1. in or towards the lower part of a stream; with the current

  2. (in the oil industry) of or for the refining, distribution, or marketing of oil or its derived products Compare upstream

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of downstream

First recorded in 1700–10; down 1 + stream

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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