"tributary" in the noun sense

1. feeder, tributary, confluent, affluent

a branch that flows into the main stream

"tributary" in the adjective sense

1. tributary

of a stream) flowing into a larger stream

2. tributary

paying tribute

"a tributary colony"

3. conducive, contributing, contributive, contributory, tributary

tending to bring about being partly responsible for

"working conditions are not conducive to productivity"

"the seaport was a contributing factor in the growth of the city"

"a contributory factor"

Source: WordNet® (An amazing lexical database of English)

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