1

I would like to know if there is a verb for confluence. I have looked through most of the established dictionaries as well as on the internet.

If there is no verb (and possibly no adjective, too), would you verbify the noun to to confluence as Americans tend to do with many nouns?

Improve this question

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
4

There isn't a direct verb equivalent, but there's a very similar option. Confluence comes from Latin origins meaning "flow together." There's no verb like "to conflue." But there is converge, which comes from Latin for "turn/bend/lean together." The modern meanings of confluence and convergence are near identical—both meaning multiple things coming together—so converge can serve as a stand-in for the missing "conflue!"

(Oh, and adjectives—yes, there is converging, which is good because confluing is just confusing!)

Improve this answer
4
  • I remember my geography teacher saying that the Rhône - Saône confluence is where those rivers meet, so I would use 'meeting'.
    – Michael Harvey
    Commented Oct 18, 2021 at 14:52
  • Also, note: confluence is very much a word to choose when talking about actual rivers. To use it metaphorically of other things, note that the definition linked above describes it as "somewhat formal." If you're looking to recast a sentence like "We stand at the confluence of tradition and innovation," you might just tone down the poeticism and say "We're at the place that tradition and innovation converge."
    – Andy Bonner
    Commented Oct 18, 2021 at 16:10
  • 1
    Or meet........?
    – Michael Harvey
    Commented Oct 18, 2021 at 16:54
  • 1
    Join and meet come straight from the map, and merge is also good if you want to emphasise the mixing.
    – Peter
    Commented Oct 19, 2021 at 9:17

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .