Godavari

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A major river flowing through central and southern India eastward into the Bay of Bengal, important for irrigation and agriculture
2. The long Indian river that rises in the Western Ghats and empties into the Bay of Bengal after crossing the Deccan plateau
3. A large waterway in peninsular India that drains westward hills and reaches the Bay of Bengal through fertile farmland

Etymology: Godavari is the name of one of the great rivers of peninsular India, flowing roughly 1,450 kilometres from the Western Ghats to the Bay of Bengal. The name comes from Sanskrit "godāvarī", a compound of "go", meaning cow, and "vari", meaning water, so the name can be read as something like "cow-water" or "the water of the cows." Sanskrit words for rivers were often feminine, which is why the name ends in the feminine "-ī" ending. The word has passed into English as a proper name, used for the river itself and for places and districts along its course, such as the city of Rajahmundry on its banks. Its spelling in English reflects the transliteration of the Sanskrit and Telugu forms, and the river is still regarded as sacred in Hindu tradition.