Paraná

American  

[par-uh-nah, pah-rah-nah] / ˌpær əˈnɑ, ˌpɑ rɑˈnɑ /

noun

1. a river in central South America, flowing from S Brazil along the SE boundary of Paraguay and through E Argentina into the Río de la Plata. 2,050 miles (3,300 km) long.

2. a city in E Argentina, on the Paraná River: the capital of Argentina 1852–61.

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Paraná British  

noun

1. a state of S Brazil, on the Atlantic: consists of a coastal plain and a large rolling plateau with extensive forests. Capital: Curitiba. Pop: 9 798 006 (2002). Area: 199 555 sq km (77 048 sq miles)

2. a city in E Argentina, on the Paraná River opposite Santa Fe: capital of Argentina (1853–1862). Pop: 305 000 (2005 est)

3. a river in central South America, formed in S Brazil by the confluence of the Rio Grande and the Paranaíba River and flowing generally south to the Atlantic through the Río de la Plata estuary. Length: 2900 km (1800 miles)

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Example Sentences

Photographer Julio Szymanski of Cascavel, a city in Paraná state, says his best-selling urban landscape photos feature some of the 150 or so capybaras that live in a downtown park.

From Slate • May 27, 2026

Ominously, the Paraná delta — the second largest river in South America after the Amazon — caught fire several years ago amid terrible drought.

From Salon • Sep. 7, 2024

The twin-engine turboprop plane was flying from Cascavel in the southern state of Paraná to the main airport in São Paulo city when it came down in the town of Vinhedo, the Voepass airline said.

From BBC • Aug. 9, 2024

The Chaná are an Indigenous people in Argentina and Uruguay whose lives were intertwined with the mighty Paraná River, the second longest in South America.

From New York Times • Jan. 13, 2024

The three states of São Paulo, Paraná, and Santa Catharina contain most of the region under description, but south-western Minas and extreme southern Goyaz also belong to it.

From The South American Republics Part I of II by Dawson, Thomas C.