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upriver

American

[uhp-riv-er] / ˈʌpˈrɪv ər /

adverb

in the direction of or nearer the source of a river.

It's hard to paddle a canoe upriver; an upriver settlement of tribes.

upriver British

/ ˈʌpˈrɪvə /

adjective

towards or near the source of a river

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

an area located upstream

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of upriver

An Americanism dating back to 1830–40; up- + river ¹

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.

A few miles upriver, at Lock 10 on the old canal, workers were busy removing boulders so they could eventually reach the damaged pipe.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 19, 2026

With the leak's Maryland location upriver from Washington, much of it found its way to the waters skirting the US capital.

From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026

We’re not like the Chinook salmon that seek out upriver spawning zones or feline species that go into heat each spring and summer.

From Salon • Dec. 19, 2025

Whilst bears are generally solitary, this one was heading to feast with others on the glut of sockeye salmon migrating upriver from the Pacific to their origin lake to spawn.

From BBC • Aug. 26, 2025

And so, when it was time for him to go upriver, she ran away with him.

From "In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson" by Bette Bao Lord

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023