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Mississippi River

Mississippi River

23 1.0
A large river in North America that flows from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico
  • proper noun
  • /ˌmɪsɪˈsɪpi ˈrɪvər/
translation icon : río Misisipi
  • The Mississippi River flows from northern Minnesota all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.
  • Mississippi River Valley
  • west of the Mississippi River
  • east of the Mississippi River

It's where the it's where the Mississippi River begins at Lake Itasca Park.

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Examples

  • And in Louisiana, the Mississippi River was also at record flood levels.

  • As the destination, the students chose the area west of the Mississippi River.

    Academic text (2002)
  • The Robert E. Lee was designed for the Mississippi River...

  • "Of course," my mother said, "only it's now standing at the bottom of the Mississippi River."

    Fiction book (2002)
  • We have driven as far down the right bank of the Mississippi River as it is possible to drive.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • One tribe after another was forced to move west of the Mississippi River.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • Bulls have been known to swim way up the Mississippi River.

  • On one trip, he floated the entire length of the Mississippi River.

    Academic text (2007)
  • Thanks to General Grant's victories in Tennessee, we have near control of the Mississippi River.

  • Modern activities have greatly affected the Mississippi River and its tributaries.

    Academic text (2002)

Synonyms

Mississippi
vsMississippi River
80 1.0

A large river that flows from northern Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico

is framed as the main river of the United States

Surface Forms

Morphology

Mississippi + river

The phrase is a straightforward composition of a place name and the common noun 'river' — if a learner knows 'Mississippi' as the proper name and 'river' as a watercourse, the meaning is directly recoverable. This <ProperName> + river pattern is cross-linguistically common and not idiomatic, so it is immediately understandable rather than metaphorical or unpredictable.

Etymology

Mississippi River comes from a Native American word that meant 'big river' or 'great river' because the river is very large. So the part Mississippi meant 'big' and River is the waterway, which helps us remember the name means the 'big' or main river of the United States.