Rio Grande

¹ American  

[ree-oh grand, gran-dee, grahn-dey, ree-oo grahn-di] / ˈri oʊ ˈgrænd, ˈgræn di, ˈgrɑn deɪ, ˌri ʊ ˈgrɑ̃ dɪ /

noun

1. Mexican Rio Bravo.  a river flowing from SW Colorado through central New Mexico and along the boundary between Texas and Mexico into the Gulf of Mexico. 1,800 miles (2,900 km) long.

2. a river flowing W from SE Brazil into the Paraná River. 650 miles (1,050 km) long.

3. Also called Rio Grande do Sul.  São Pedro do Río Grande do Sul.

---

Río Grande ² American  

[ree-oh grahn-dey, -dee, ree-aw grahn-de] / ˈri oʊ ˈgrɑn deɪ, -di, ˈri ɔ ˈgrɑn dɛ /

noun

1. a city in NE Puerto Rico.

2. a river in central Nicaragua, flowing NE to the Caribbean Sea. About 200 miles (320 km) long.

---

Rio Grande British  

noun

1. Mexican name: Río Bravo.  a river in North America, rising in SW Colorado and flowing southeast to the Gulf of Mexico, forming the border between the US and Mexico. Length: about 3030 km (1885 miles)

2. a port in SE Brazil, in SE Rio Grande do Sul state: serves as the port for Porto Alegre. Pop: 188 000 (2005 est)

---

Rio Grande Cultural  

1. River running east from Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico, dividing the United States from Mexico.

---

Example Sentences

"Life is brutal, but it is also a paradise, and it's about going through many different moments," said Sonza, who is from Rio Grande do Sul in southern Brazil.

From Barron's • Apr. 13, 2026

In parts of Arizona and California, temperatures hit 112ºF — a first in March, breaking a record that hadn’t been touched since March 1954, when the mercury reached 108ºF in Rio Grande City, Texas.

From Salon • Apr. 4, 2026

In 2024, heavy rains in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul left hundreds of towns under water, with at least 85 people killed and about 150,000 displaced.

From BBC • Feb. 24, 2026

Elizabeth previously covered local government for the Austin American-Statesman, the Dallas Morning News and, in the Rio Grande Valley, for the Monitor.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 9, 2026

It sticks its big old Panhandle up north and it slops and slouches along the Rio Grande.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck