This is the 178th most frequent Croatian word.
rijeka
"Rijeka" means "river" in English.
Here 'Rijeka' is a proper noun as a city name in Croatia.
Rijeka je poznata po svojoj dugoj povijesti.
Rijeka is known for its long history.
In this example, 'rijeka' is used metaphorically to describe a large number of moving people as a river.
Rijeka ljudi prolazi ulicom.
A stream of people is passing through the street.
Here 'rijeka' is used in the literal sense, denoting a natural water flow.