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Definitions

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

  1. n. The part of the wide lower course of a river where its current is met by the tides.
  2. n. An arm of the sea that extends inland to meet the mouth of a river.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

  1. n. An arm or inlet of the sea, particularly one that is covered by water only at high tide.
  2. n. That part of the mouth or lower course of a river flowing into the sea which is subject to tides; specifically, an enlargement of a riverchannel toward its mouth in which the movement of the tides is very prominent. The principal estuaries, as thus restricted, are those of the St. Lawrence in North America, the Plata in South America, the Thames in England, the Elbe in Germany, and the Gironde in France.
  3. n. A place where water boils up.
  4. Belonging to or formed in an estuary: as, estuary strata.

Wiktionary

  1. n. Coastal water body where ocean tides and river water merge.
  2. n. An ocean inlet also fed by fresh river water.

GNU Webster's 1913

  1. n. A place where water boils up; a spring that wells forth.
  2. n. A passage, as the mouth of a river or lake, where the tide meets the current; an arm of the sea; a frith.
  3. adj. Belonging to, or formed in, an estuary.

WordNet 3.0

  1. n. the wide part of a river where it nears the sea; fresh and salt water mix

Etymologies

  1. Latin aestuārium, from aestus, tide, surge, heat.

Examples

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Lists

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‘estuary’ has been looked up 1836 times, loved by 2 people, added to 35 lists, commented on 1 time, and has a Scrabble score of 10.