River
Verb + river
cross a river
pollute a river
rivers flow
rivers freeze
Adjective + river
a deep / shallow river
a wide / narrow river
a long river
Common expressions
fall into a river
walk along a river
sail up / down a river
drift down a river
catch fish in a river
a bridge across a river
down at the river
Exercises
1. Verb + river
Two major rivers flow through our town.
The river froze over completely during the freezing weather.
The only way to cross the river is by ferry. There isn’t a bridge for miles.
Waste from factories continues to pollute our rivers, killing fish and wildlife.
2. Adjective + river
Is the Nile the longest river in the world or is it the Mississippi?
I don’t think we’ll be able to swim across the river at this point. It’s far too wide.
The river’s quite deep here. Let’s try to cross it further up. It looks shallower there.
3. Common expressions
I caught six fish in the River Tyne at the weekend. (c)
We were only able to sail up the river as far as the dam. (f)
They’re building a new bridge across the river. (a)
The boat drifted slowly down the river towards the open sea. (e)
After dinner we went for a walk along the river bank. (d)
I slipped on the wet ground and fell into the river. (b)
Note
One side of the river is called the river bank. Both sides are the banks of the river.
The river overflowed its banks after a week of heavy rainfall.
The village was flooded when the rive rose and burst its banks.