river basin

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Definition of river basin

noun Physical Geography.

the area of land drained by a river and its branches.

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Origin of river basin

First recorded in 1875–80

Words nearby river basin

river, Rivera, Rivera, Diego, riverbank, riverbank grape, river basin, riverbed, river birch, river blindness, riverboat, river bugging

How to use river basin in a sentence

The infrastructure bill does earmark millions of dollars to improve river basin ecosystems and help fish get around man-made barriers across the country.
The Fight to Save the Salmon|By Brian Bennett/Lapwai, Idaho with Photographs by Kiliii Yüyan|October 18, 2021|Time
By 2017, they found, 37 percent of those river basins still weren’t seeing the amount of water flow that they had predrought.
Rivers might not be as resilient to drought as once thought|Carolyn Gramling|May 13, 2021|Science News
He observes the bodies floating away on the river, pulling on his cigarette with a sneer.
Houellebecq’s Incendiary Novel Imagines France With a Muslim President|Pierre Assouline|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But you know, I had only one other hero in my life acting and that was River [Phoenix].
Coffee Talk with Ethan Hawke: On ‘Boyhood,’ Jennifer Lawrence, and Bill Clinton’s Urinal Exchange|Marlow Stern|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Today, the train chugs north out of Kanchanaburi over the famous bridge before it hits a spectacular bend in the river.
Riding Thailand’s WWII Death Railway|Liza Foreman|December 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The film helps to draw scores of visitors to this sleepy river town year after year.
Riding Thailand’s WWII Death Railway|Liza Foreman|December 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And then, on one recent morning, the train made a stop at a small station near an especially beautiful section of the river.
Riding Thailand’s WWII Death Railway|Liza Foreman|December 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
This city stands upon almost two equal parts on each side the river that passes through.
Gulliver's Travels|Jonathan Swift
In this position, the line of cavalry formed the chord of the arc described by the river, and occupied by us.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
Dick was at the wharf, one day last week, when one of the up river boats arrived.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
San Antonio de Bexar lies in a fertile and well-irrigated valley, stretching westward from the river Salado.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
The riches of the unjust shall be dried up like a river, and shall pass away with a noise like a great thunder in rain.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various

Scientific definitions for river basin

river basin

The land area that is drained by a river and its tributaries. The Mississippi River basin, for example, is a vast area that covers much of the central United States from the central ranges of the Appalachian Mountains in the east to the eastern ranges of the Rocky Mountains in the west, funneling toward its delta in southern Louisiana and emptying into the Gulf of Mexico.