Orinoco

American  

[awr-uh-noh-koh, ohr-, aw-ree-naw-kaw] / ˌɔr əˈnoʊ koʊ, ˌoʊr-, ˌɔ riˈnɔ kɔ /

noun

1. a river in N South America, flowing N from the border of Brazil, along the E border of Colombia, and NE through Venezuela to the Atlantic. 1,600 miles (2,575 km) long.

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Orinoco British  

/ ˌɒrɪˈnəʊkəʊ /

noun

1. a river in N South America, rising in S Venezuela and flowing west, then north as part of the border between Colombia and Venezuela, then east to the Atlantic by a great delta: the third largest river system in South America, draining an area of 945 000 sq km (365 000 sq miles); reaches a width of 22 km (14 miles) during the rainy season. Length: about 2575 km (1600 miles)

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Example Sentences

Sandy percussion accompanies a journey up the Orinoco River.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 19, 2026

While Venezuela sits on the planet’s largest oil reserves—holding more than Saudi Arabia—its sludge-like petroleum from regions like the Orinoco Belt is expensive and technically difficult to extract.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 24, 2026

Most of the foreign investment under the Apertura had gone into the Orinoco Belt, a 54,000-square-mile region, rich with oil, but oil so thick that it would not flow by itself.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 10, 2026

Most of Venezuela’s mineral deposits are located within the Arco Minero del Orinoco, or Orinoco Mining Arc, a remote, jungle-covered mining area largely controlled by illicit networks and armed groups.

From Barron's • Jan. 9, 2026

Battered by European diseases and slave raiding, many fled to the Orinoco, becoming wandering foragers.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann