tributary : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: tributary	by the DICT Development Group
3 results for tributary
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
tributary adj (of a stream) flowing into a larger stream paying tribute; "a tributary colony" tending to bring about; being partly responsible for; "working conditions are not conducive to productivity"; "the seaport was a contributing factor in the growth of the city"; "a contributory factor" Synonym(s): conducive, contributing(a), contributive, contributory, tributary n a branch that flows into the main stream [syn: feeder, tributary, confluent, affluent] Antonym(s): distributary
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Tributary \Trib"utary\, a. [OE. tributaire, F. tributaire, L. tributarius. See {Tribute}.] 1. Paying tribute to another, either from compulsion, as an acknowledgment of submission, or to secure protection, or for the purpose of purchasing peace. [Julius] unto Rome made them tributary. --Chaucer. 2. Hence, subject; subordinate; inferior. He to grace his tributary gods. --Milton. 3. Paid in tribute. [bd]Tributary tears.[b8] --Shak. 4. Yielding supplies of any kind; serving to form or make up, a greater object of the same kind, as a part, branch, etc.; contributing; as, the Ohio has many tributary streams, and is itself tributary to the Mississippi.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Tributary \Trib"utary\, n.; pl. {Tributaries}. 1. A ruler or state that pays tribute, or a stated sum, to a conquering power, for the purpose of securing peace and protection, or as an acknowledgment of submission, or for the purchase of security. 2. A stream or river flowing into a larger river or into a lake; an affluent.