Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Tributary?

\Trib"u*ta*ry\, 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. ``Tributary tears.'' --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.
\Trib"u*ta*ry\, 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.