·adj Paid in tribute.
II. Tributary ·adj Hence, subject; subordinate; inferior.
III. Tributary ·noun A stream or river flowing into a larger river or into a lake; an Affluent.
IV. Tributary ·adj Paying tribute to another, either from compulsion, as an acknowledgment of submission, or to secure protection, or for the purpose of purchasing peace.
V. Tributary ·noun A ruler or state that pays tribute, or a stated sum, to a conquering power, for the purpose of securing peace and protection, or as an acknowledgment of submission, or for the purchase of security.
VI. Tributary ·adj Yielding supplies of any kind; serving to form or make up, a greater object of the same kind, as a part, branch, ·etc.; contributing; as, the Ohio has many tributary streams, and is itself tributary to the Mississippi.