Meaning & use
Euphrates River
Last updated
Meanings
proper nounproper
A long river that begins in Turkey and flows through Syria and Iraq, important in ancient history.
Grammar: Used with the definite article in natural speech: the Euphrates River, or simply the Euphrates.
Patterns
- the Euphrates River
- along the Euphrates River
- the Euphrates River valley
The Euphrates River runs from the mountains of eastern Turkey down to the Persian Gulf.
Ancient cities such as Babylon grew up along the Euphrates River.
Farmers in Iraq still depend on water from the Euphrates River for their crops.
proper nounproperformal
The region around this river, seen as the cradle of early civilization in Mesopotamia.
Grammar: Here the name stands for the river and the land around it together, often in history writing.
Patterns
- the Euphrates River civilizations
- the Euphrates River basin
The first written laws appeared in the lands of the Euphrates River.
Students of ancient history study the Euphrates River and its neighbor, the Tigris.
Common combinations
- the Euphrates River valley
- The Euphrates River valley was home to some of the world's first cities.
- cross the Euphrates River
- The army had to cross the Euphrates River to reach the capital.
- flow into the Euphrates River
- Several smaller rivers flow into the Euphrates River in Syria.
- the banks of the Euphrates River
- People built mud-brick houses on the banks of the Euphrates River.
- the Euphrates River basin
- Rainfall in the Euphrates River basin has dropped in recent years.
Synonyms and how they differ
- the Euphrates
- The short form is more common in writing after the river has already been mentioned.
- the Tigris
- The other great river of Mesopotamia; it runs roughly parallel to the Euphrates and is often mentioned with it.
Commonly confused: Euphrates River or Euphrates? Euphrates River or Tigris?
Euphrates River vs Euphrates
This is the same river; the full name adds 'River', which is normal in geography but not required.
Euphrates River vs Tigris
A different river in the same region; the two are often confused because they are always discussed together.
Practice
Which sentence uses the name correctly?
Choose one answer.
The name normally takes 'the' before it and a singular verb: 'The Euphrates River flows…'. Option 0 drops 'the', and options 2 and 3 use impossible verb forms.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “Euphrates River”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.