liman

[li-mahn, -man]

noun

Geology.

1. a muddy lagoon, marsh, or lake near the mouth of a river behind part of the delta and more or less protected from open water by a barrier or spit.

2. an area of mud or silt deposited near the mouth of a river.

Word History and Origins

Origin of liman¹

1855–60; < Russian limán estuary, coastal salt lake < Turkish or Crimean Tatar < Medieval Greek liménion, liménas (compare Greek limḗn harbor)

Example Sentences

It is not enough to have a steamer on the liman of the Dniestr, unless one has also the means of making use of it.

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The river falls into the sea by several arms, passing through a shallow liman or lagoon, a few miles S.W. of Odessa.

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