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sell down the river

sell down the riv·er
S s

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • UK Pronunciation
    • UK IPA
    • [sel doun stressed th ee riv-er]
    • /sɛl daʊn stressed ði ˈrɪv ər/
    • /sel daʊn ðə ˈrɪvə(r)/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [sel doun stressed th ee riv-er]
    • /sɛl daʊn stressed ði ˈrɪv ər/

Definitions of sell down the river words

  • noun sell down the river a natural stream of water of fairly large size flowing in a definite course or channel or series of diverging and converging channels. 1
  • noun sell down the river a similar stream of something other than water: a river of lava; a river of ice. 1
  • noun sell down the river any abundant stream or copious flow; outpouring: rivers of tears; rivers of words. 1
  • noun sell down the river (initial capital letter) Astronomy. the constellation Eridanus. 1
  • noun sell down the river Printing. a vertical channel of white space resulting from the alignment in several lines of spaces between words. 1
  • idioms sell down the river sell down the river, to betray; desert; mislead: to sell one's friends down the river. 1
See all 10 definitions of sell down the river

Information block about the term

Origin of sell down the river

First appearance:

before 1250
One of the 11% oldest English words
1250-1300; Middle English < Old French rivere, riviere < Vulgar Latin *rīpāria, noun use of feminine of Latin rīpārius riparian

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Sell down the river

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Full grammatical hierarchy of Sell down the river

sell down the river popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 99% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.
Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".

sell down the river usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for sell down the river

verb sell down the river

  • backstab — to attack in a deceitful manner
  • betray — If you betray someone who loves or trusts you, your actions hurt and disappoint them.
  • blow the whistle — to inform (on)
  • bunking — a built-in platform bed, as on a ship.
All 13 Synonyms of sell down the river

See also

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