Tributary
Translation- Tributary
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This article is about a lesser flow of water. For other uses, see Tributary (disambiguation). For other uses of Confluence (which redirects here), see Confluence (disambiguation).
Biała Lądecka, a right tributary of Nysa Kłodzka in Poland, located in the village of Bielice in Lower Silesia.
A tributary or affluent[1] is a stream or river that flows into a main stem (or parent) river or a lake.[2] A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the mainstem river serve to drain the surrounding drainage basin of its surface water and groundwater by leading the water out into an ocean or sea.
A confluence, where two or more bodies of water meet together, usually refers to the joining of tributaries.
Reciprocal to a tributary is a distributary, a river that branches off of and flows away from the main stream. Distributaries are most often found in river deltas.
Contents
Terminology
Walton Creek, a small tributary of the Lochsa River in northeastern Idaho, flowing slightly upstream of its confluence with a larger stream.'Right tributary' and 'left tributary' (or 'right-bank tributary' and 'left-bank tributary') are terms stating the position of the tributary relative to the flow of the mainstem river. These terms are defined from the perspective of looking downstream (in the direction the water current is going).
Ordering and enumeration
In geography, tributaries are sometimes ordered from those nearest to the source of the river to those nearest to the mouth of the river. For example, the Strahler Stream Order examines the arrangement of tributaries in a hierarchy of first, second, third, and higher orders, with the first order tributary being typically the least in size. For example, a second order tributary would be composed of two or more first order tributaries combining to form the second order tributary.
Another method is to organize tributaries from mouth to source, in the form of a tree structure, stored as a tree data structure.[citation needed]
See also
References
- ^ "affluent". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. Viewed 30 Sep. 2008.
- ^ Merriam-Webster
External links
Categories:- Physical geography
- Rivers
- Tributaries
- Water streams
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Tributary — Trib u*ta*ry, a. [OE. tributaire, F. tributaire, L. tributarius. See {Tribute}.] 1. Paying tribute to another, either from compulsion, as an acknowledgment of submission, or to secure protection, or for the purpose of purchasing peace. [1913… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
tributary — 1> данник; государство, платящее дань 2> приток 3> платящий дань, подчиненный Ex: tributary states зависимые государства Ex: tributary race покоренный народ 4> являющийся притоком Ex: tributary stream приток 5> боковой Ex: tributary lane боковая… … Новый большой англо-русский словарь
tributary — 1. noun 1) данник; государство, платящее дань 2) приток 2. adj.1) платящий дань; подчиненный 2) являющийся притоком; tributary stream при ток 3) geol. второстепенный, подчиненный (о породе) … Англо-русский словарь Мюллера
Tributary — Trib u*ta*ry, n.; pl. {Tributaries}. 1. A ruler or state that pays tribute, or a stated sum, to a conquering power, for the purpose of securing peace and protection, or as an acknowledgment of submission, or for the purchase of security. [1913… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
tributary — ˈtrɪbjutərɪ 1. сущ. 1) данник; государство, платящее дань 2) приток 2. прил. 1) платящий дань; подчиненный 2) а) являющийся притоком б) дополнительный … Большой англо-русский и русско-английский словарь
tributary — приток (реки) first order tributary headwater tributary second order tributary … Англо-русский словарь технических терминов
tributary — I. adjective Date: 14th century 1. paying tribute to another to acknowledge submission, to obtain protection, or to purchase peace ; subject 2. paid or owed as tribute < tributary gifts > 3. channeling material or supplies into something more… … New Collegiate Dictionary
tributary — tributarily, adv. /trib yeuh ter ee/, n., pl. tributaries, adj. n. 1. a stream that flows to a larger stream or other body of water. 2. a person or nation that pays tribute in acknowledgment of subjugation or the like. adj. 3. (of a stream)… … Universalium
tributary — приток (реки) … Англо-русский словарь строительных терминов
tributary — a stream or river that enters a larger body of water, either another river or a lake … Dictionary of ichthyology