upriver

American  

[uhp-riv-er] / ˈʌpˈrɪv ər /

adverb

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

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

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upriver British  

/ ˈʌpˈrɪvə /

adjective

1. towards or near the source of a river

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noun

1. an area located upstream

Etymology

Origin of upriver

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

Example Sentences

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

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

But 13 miles upriver from the park where he was jogging, the river began — at 3:10 a.m. — to rise 25 feet in just two hours.

From Salon • Jul. 12, 2025

The virus was hitting families selectively, but no one understood this because the flow of news coming from upriver was being choked off.

From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston