ria

R1I1A1
UK/ˈɹiːə//riːə/

noun

A narrow inlet of the sea formed by a flooded unglaciated river valley.

OriginGerman Ria ← Spanish ría ← Galician ría →
Less commonFirst used 19th c.Scrabble 3
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Meanings

ria1

nounria (plural rias)

plural rias

  1. geographyA narrow inlet of the sea formed by a flooded unglaciated river valley.First known use 19th c.

    Flinders had advised Baudin to stop in Port Jackson (the ria of what is now Sydney) when in need of refreshment […].

    2020, Sujit Sivasundaram, Waves Across the South, William Collins, published 2021, page 49

RIA2

nounRIA (plural RIAs)

plural RIAs

  1. abbreviationinitialismcomputingInitialism of rich Internet application.
  2. abbreviationinitialismnuclear industryInitialism of radioimmunoassay.
  3. abbreviationinitialismnuclear industryInitialism of Reactivity-Initiated Accident.
  4. abbreviationinitialismbusinessInitialism of registered investment adviser.
  5. abbreviationinitialismInitialism of Regulatory Impact Assessment.

Ria3

proper noun
  1. A female given name derived from Maria.

Origin

ria · noun

  1. Galicianrío
  2. Galicianría
  3. Spanishría“inlet, estuary”
  4. GermanRia
  5. Englishria

From German Ria, from Spanish ría (“inlet, estuary”), from Galician ría, from Galician río, from Latin.

More words from German, Spanish, Galician

Full word history & related roots →

Ria · proper noun

Diminutive of Maria.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish rias
  • riasa coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley
French aber, ria
  • abera coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley
  • riaa coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley
Portuguese ria
  • riaa coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley
Spanish ría
  • ríaa coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with ria

viaideaKoreaeamariaTanzaniaLuciaGarciamiaEritrealeaBeadiarrheaLeahsheaureaHoseapizzeriaSandiatortillaPadillaTheachiaShia
All rhymes →

Sounds the same

Riya

Anagrams

airIRAArirai
Cite this entry
APA

ria. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ria

MLA

“ria.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ria. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ria,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ria.

Source: ria on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.