flūmen
neuter
The English word 'river' can be translated into Latin using several forms, most commonly flūmen. Wiktionary also lists fluvius and amnis.
Meaning: large stream which drains a landmass (noun)
Ways to say it
| Latin | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| flūmen | neuter | |
| fluvius | /flui̯.i̯-/ /fluː.i̯-/ |
masculine |
| amnis | [ˈam.nɪs] (Classical Latin, narrow) [ˈam.nis] (narrow) |
masculine |
| rīpāria | feminine |
All forms refer to a large stream that drains a landmass.
Which one should you use?
flūmen is a neuter noun, while both fluvius and amnis are masculine nouns. The form rīpāria is feminine.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural of the masculine noun fluvius is fluviī. The noun amnis belongs to the third declension and uses the same form for both the nominative singular and the genitive singular.
Did you know?
- The word fluvius shares a root with the English word 'influence', which originally referred to the flowing in of a celestial body's power.
- The word rīpāria is closely tied to 'riparian', a term still used in English law to describe the rights of landowners whose property borders a river.
Examples in context
- Fluvius iuxta domum est.There is a river beside the house.This sentence shows the use of fluvius to describe a river's location.Tatoeba #1172334 by alexmarcelo, translation #49395 by CK
- Hic fluvius pulcher est.This river is beautiful.This sentence uses fluvius to describe a river's appearance.Tatoeba #8492015 by alexmarcelo, translation #58114 by CK
- Vīcus ad flūmen situs est.The village lies by a river.This sentence demonstrates the use of flūmen to describe a village's location.Tatoeba #11152837 by alexmarcelo, translation #7321311 by MarijnKp
- Tamesis fluvius est in Britannia.The River Thames is in Britain.
- 16 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Quintus and Aurelia are walking through the countryside.
- QuintusEcce, flūmen magnum!Look, a large river!
- AureliaUbi est pons?Where is the bridge?
- QuintusPons ad flūmen proximum est.The bridge is near the river.
- AureliaGrātiās tibi, Quinte.Thank you, Quintus.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “river” translations and entries fluvius, amnis, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
