confluence
Americannoun
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a flowing together of two or more streams, rivers, or the like.
the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.
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their place of junction.
St. Louis is at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.
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a body of water formed by the flowing together of two or more streams, rivers, or the like.
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a coming together of people or things; concourse.
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a crowd or throng; assemblage.
noun
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a merging or flowing together, esp of rivers
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a gathering together, esp of people
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A flowing together of two or more streams or two or more glaciers.
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The point of juncture of such streams or glaciers.
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The combined stream or glacier formed by this juncture.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of confluence
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Middle French, from Late Latin confluentia, from Latin confluent-, stem of confluēns “flowing together” ( see confluent) + -ia -ia
Explanation
Confluence means a flowing together. In a literal sense, it's about rivers. But it's more often used to talk about the coming together of factors or ideas, or of cultures in a diverse city. Con- means "with," and -fluence sounds like "flow." When things come together like rivers do, flowing from entirely different places, you call that a confluence. If the senior class needs to raise money for a class trip, and the drama club is looking for someone to do concessions during intermission at the school play, that's a confluence of factors.
Vocabulary lists containing confluence
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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com-, con-
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And no matter how much I prepare for the confluence of these two events, there will inevitably be some part of myself, throughout the day, that feels like I’m doing it wrong.
From Salon • Jun. 18, 2026
Given the group’s commitment to costumed stage personas, the mixed sexuality of their members, and their name, the Village People came to represent the confluence of masculinity and queerness.
From Slate • Jun. 11, 2026
"Today's rally is being driven by a genuine confluence of positive catalysts rather than any single headline," Dilin Wu, research strategist at Pepperstone, told AFP.
From Barron's • May 21, 2026
The confluence of Day’s songs, Herrmann’s score and Benjamin’s cantata demolished the cliché of cinema music needing to stay in the background.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026
“See the confluence of those two rivers? We land right in between.”
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
