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confluence

noun

con·flu·ence�?kän-ˌflü-ən(t)s How to pronounce confluence (audio)

kən-�?flü- How to pronounce confluence (audio)

Synonyms ofconfluence next

:a coming or flowing together, meeting, or gathering at one point

At theconfluence of Native American, Hispanic, and Anglo cultures, Santa Fe is the symbolic heart of the Southwest.—

Jeffrey Steingarten

A hip urbanconfluence of tasting rooms, galleries, and surfboard designers, it's a place where wine, art and beach culture coalesce.—

Wine Enthusiast Magazine

Every once in a while in pop music there is a magicalconfluence: the right performers doing the right music with the right support.—

Ralph Novak

Italian influences have marked not only the style of architecture in Passau but also the way of life. Then, of course, Eastern Europe is next door. There are manyconfluences, it seems.—

N. Scott Momaday

:the flowing together of two or more streams

A complex lacework of waterways formed by theconfluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers, the delta is the state's major water source …—

Robert B. Gunnison

Confluences are a basic building block of river networks on all scales.—

Chris Paola

:the place of meeting of two streams

… quaint Carbondale is set at theconfluence of the Crystal and Roaring Fork Rivers.—

National Geographic

:the stream or body formed by the junction of two or more streams:a combined flood

… and eventually chose, disastrously, the only place in Assam where it was impossible for tea to thrive, being regularly drowned by theconfluence of two huge rivers, a more suitable terrain for rice.—

Christian Lamb

orconfluency

kən-�?flü-ən(t)-sē How to pronounce confluence (audio)

cell biology:the degree of substrate coverage that is exhibited by proliferating, adherent cells cultured in a laboratory vessel (such as a petri dish or flask)

At days 12-14, cellconfluence reached 80%.—

Runguang Li et al.

The measurement of cellconfluency is used to determine the growth phase of cells …—

Mee Foong et al.

also:complete coverage of a culture substrate by proliferating, adherent cells

When the cells reachconfluence, they form aggregates and can be serially cultured.—

C. A. B. Jahoda et al.

Replicate dishes of pooled cells were grown toconfluency and induced with Newcastle disease virus …—

Hermann Ragg and Charles Weissmann

Did you know?

The joining of rivers—as at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, where the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers flow together spectacularly—was the original meaning ofconfluence, and in its later meanings we still hear a strong echo of the physical merging of waters. So today we can speak of a confluence of events, a confluence of interests, a confluence of cultures, and so on, from which something important often emerges.

Synonyms ofconfluence

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Examples ofconfluence in a Sentence

the Mississippi River'sconfluence with the Missouri River a happyconfluence of beautiful weather and spectacular scenery during our vacation

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage.Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.Send us feedback.

But theconfluence of events has given rise to an implicit and at times explicit messianic complex in GOP politics; that God is exclusively working through one party and one person and one nation.—

Abby McCloskey,Mercury News, 7 Nov. 2025Theconfluence of pro-employee cultural forces and shaky economics in the media business inspired many employees to form unions or deploy more aggressive union tactics.—

Max Tani,semafor.com, 6 Nov. 2025Is theconfluence of decreasing interest in alcohol and increasing interest in marijuana making Americans socialize less?—

Dan Brooks,The Atlantic, 3 Nov. 2025But how rare to get aconfluence of real-world events and a buzzy HBO Sunday-night show that gives Angelenos heartfelt cause to celebrate ourselves.—

Rachel Brodsky,Rolling Stone, 3 Nov. 2025See All Example Sentences forconfluence