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What is a river?

A boat in a river at the base of a mountain range

A river is a natural body of water that flows across land.

Rivers often begin in the mountains and hills and they flow downhill because of into a sea or ocean.

A boat in a river at the base of a mountain range

Watch: Learn about the longest rivers in the UK

Discover more about the longest river in the UK - the River Severn.

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Rivers in the UK

Rivers have played a very important part in human history; many cities and towns have formed on their banks.

They serve as a source of water and food, borders between countries and areas, and as a way of transporting people and goods.

In the UK, rivers have been an important source of communication and travel since ancient times.

The rivers were used to build a network of . These were first used for transporting goods and materials and nowadays, they are used for boating.

Today, rivers are as important as ever and provide people with not only water, but also electricity.

The longest rivers in the UK

A map of the longest rivers of the UK
Figure caption,
A map of the longest rivers of the UK
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How are rivers formed

  1. A river begins as a tiny stream at a place called the source, usually in an upland area. The water may come from an underground spring, rainfall, melting snow or ice, a lake or a large pond.

  2. As it joins other streams, it grows and becomes a river. The water flows quickly and erodes the land. The river also picks up soil and gravel and carries it further downstream.

  3. This moving water, and the material that the water carries with it, wears away even more rock and soil. It meanders around obstacles such as hills or large rocks that it cannot erode. Over many years, it creates valleys.

  4. When the river reaches gentler slopes, it does not flow as fast and cannot carry the soil, sand and gravel, so they begin sinking into the ground and are deposited on the river bed.

  5. As the river flows onto the flat land, it grows and widens, until finally, it joins the sea at its mouth.

Different parts of the river labelled including the source, tributary, river, meander, channel and mouth
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Water cycle and rivers

Water can appear in three stages: gas, liquid and solid.

The water cycle is the way water moves around the Earth and rivers have an important part to play in it.

Image gallerySkip image gallerySlide 1 of 4, An illustration of water evaporating from a lake, 1. Liquid water from the seas and oceans is heated and forms a gas. This process is called evaporation.
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People and rivers

The rivers on Earth carry the water and nutrients that people, animals and plants all need to live.

The early settlers built their towns and villages beside rivers, because it provided them with water and fish, allowed them to grow crops and the rivers served as a means of transport using boats.

These settlements have become important centres of .

People still depend on rivers because:

  • they provide cities and towns with water
  • when they flood the surrounding land, they leave rich soil ideal for growing crops
  • they provide farmers with water to water their crops
  • they serve as a means of transport for people
  • they create hydroelectricity through
  • they offer activities such as boating and fishing
  • they serve ports where goods are loaded to and from ships
  • living near rivers can also bring certain risks, such as flooding or of the land close to houses
  • today people use various to control the water and therefore protect their homes. One way of doing this is by building dams.
Canal boat heading down a canal
Image caption,
People in the UK may hire a canal boat for a day or for a holiday.
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Activities

Quiz: Rivers

Quiz: Parts of a river

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