湾流

[ noun ]
a warm ocean current that flows from the Gulf of Mexico northward through the Atlantic Ocean
<noun.phenomenon>

Gulf \Gulf\ (g[u^]lf), n. [F. golfe, It. golfo, fr. Gr. ko`lpos
bosom, bay, gulf, LGr. ko`lfos.]
1. A hollow place in the earth; an abyss; a deep chasm or
basin,

He then surveyed
Hell and the gulf between. --Milton.

Between us and you there is a great gulf fixed.
--Luke xvi.
26.

2. That which swallows; the gullet. [Obs.] --Shak.

3. That which swallows irretrievably; a whirlpool; a sucking
eddy. --Shak.

A gulf of ruin, swallowing gold. --Tennyson.

4. (Geog.) A portion of an ocean or sea extending into the
land; a partially land-locked sea; as, the Gulf of Mexico.

5. (Mining) A large deposit of ore in a lode.

{Gulf Stream} (Geog.), the warm ocean current of the North
Atlantic.

Note: It originates in the westward equatorial current, due
to the trade winds, is deflected northward by Cape St.
Roque through the Gulf of Mexico, and flows parallel to
the coast of North America, turning eastward off the
island of Nantucket. Its average rate of flow is said
to be about two miles an hour. The similar Japan
current, or Kuro-Siwo, is sometimes called the Gulf
Stream of the Pacific.

{Gulf weed} (Bot.), a branching seaweed ({Sargassum
bacciferum}, or sea grape), having numerous berrylike air
vessels, -- found in the Gulf Stream, in the Sargasso Sea,
and elsewhere.

Stream \Stream\ (str[=e]m), n. [AS. stre['a]m; akin to OFries.
str[=a]m, OS. str[=o]m, D. stroom, G. strom, OHG. stroum,
str[=u]m, Dan. & Sw. str["o]m, Icel. straumr, Ir. sroth,
Lith. srove, Russ. struia, Gr. "ry`sis a flowing, "rei^n to
flow, Skr. sru. [root]174. Cf. {Catarrh}, {Diarrhea},
{Rheum}, {Rhythm}.]
1. A current of water or other fluid; a liquid flowing
continuously in a line or course, either on the earth, as
a river, brook, etc., or from a vessel, reservoir, or
fountain; specifically, any course of running water; as,
many streams are blended in the Mississippi; gas and steam
came from the earth in streams; a stream of molten lead
from a furnace; a stream of lava from a volcano.

2. A beam or ray of light. ``Sun streams.'' --Chaucer.

3. Anything issuing or moving with continued succession of
parts; as, a stream of words; a stream of sand. ``The
stream of beneficence.'' --Atterbury. ``The stream of
emigration.'' --Macaulay.

4. A continued current or course; as, a stream of weather.
``The very stream of his life.'' --Shak.

5. Current; drift; tendency; series of tending or moving
causes; as, the stream of opinions or manners.

{Gulf stream}. See under {Gulf}.

{Stream anchor}, {Stream cable}. (Naut.) See under {Anchor},
and {Cable}.

{Stream ice}, blocks of ice floating in a mass together in
some definite direction.

{Stream tin}, particles or masses of tin ore found in
alluvial ground; -- so called because a stream of water is
the principal agent used in separating the ore from the
sand and gravel.

{Stream works} (Cornish Mining), a place where an alluvial
deposit of tin ore is worked. --Ure.

{To float with the stream}, figuratively, to drift with the
current of opinion, custom, etc., so as not to oppose or
check it.

Syn: Current; flow; rush; tide; course.

Usage: {Stream}, {Current}. These words are often properly
interchangeable; but stream is the broader word,
denoting a prevailing onward course. The stream of the
Mississippi rolls steadily on to the Gulf of Mexico,
but there are reflex currents in it which run for a
while in a contrary direction.