rivulet
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of rivulet
1580–90; earlier rivolet < Italian rivoletto, diminutive of rivolo < Latin rīvulus small stream
Explanation
A rivulet is a small stream. A rivulet is to a river as a baby is to an adult. There are several ways to remember this word. One is the similarity of its sound to "river." Another is the suffix -let, which indicates small things. For example, a piglet is a small pig or baby pig. A 300-pound pig probably wouldn't drown in a tiny rivulet, but a piglet should stay clear. Another word for rivulet is streamlet.
Vocabulary lists containing rivulet
"The Ravine," Vocabulary from the short story
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Hatchet
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Touching Spirit Bear
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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.
"Is that rivulet a defined, discrete conveyance?" pondered Prows.
From Salon • Sep. 14, 2022
Pierce the delicate noodles with fork or teeth and the prize is a warm rivulet of pureed corn, butter and fresh thyme: a rush of summer that lingers on the tongue.
From Washington Post • Sep. 26, 2019
Menashe’s hummus is magnificent, a ring of silky, airy purée surrounding a big spoonful of chunkier, denser stuff; a green rivulet of olive oil; smears of spicy, smoky harissa and green puréed herbs.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 15, 2018
He returns home, triangle cap atop his mop of raven hair, an elegant scar running down the side of his face, looking as if he had cried a rivulet of chocolate milk.
From Slate • Jun. 18, 2015
“I am lost at sea,” she said as she limped along beside her meandering rivulet, “so perhaps I’ll find some crabs, or a nice fat fish.”
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
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.
