Seine River in n central France. It rises in Langres Plateau near Dijon, and flows nw through Paris to enter the English Channel near Le Havre. It connects to the rivers Loire, Rhône, Meuse, Schelde, Saône, and Somme by a network of canals. With its main tributaries (Aube, Marne, Oise, Yonne, Loing, and Eure), the Seine drains the entire Paris Basin. The most important river of n France, it is navigable for most ocean-going vessels as far as Rouen – 560km (350mi) of its full course of 776km (482mi).

seine / sān/ • n. (also seine net) a fishing net that hangs vertically in the water with floats at the top and weights at the bottom edge, the ends being drawn together to encircle the fish.• v. [tr.] fish (an area) with a seine: the fishermen then seine the weir. ∎  catch (fish) with a seine: they seine whitefish and salmon.DERIVATIVES: sein·er n.

seine large fishing-net. OE. seġne = OS., OHG. segina :- WGmc. *sagina — L. sagēna (whence OF. saïne, mod. seine) — Gr. sagḗnē; reinforced in ME. from of.