Solid-liquid triboelectric nanogenerators (SL-TENGs) are a new technology that combines contact electrification (CE) and electrostatic induction to collect clean energy stored in natural water. Considering their unique advantages of high energy density, wide selection of materials and being suitable for large-scale promotion, they have attracted more and more attention in recent years, and numerous studies have shown their great potential in various applications. Many critical applications of SL-TENGs inevitably involve sustained and stable high electrical output. To achieve stable output performance and long cycle life in these applications, the adaptability of SL-TENGs to material selection, structural design, and working environment is necessary. Therefore, the construction of SL-TENGs matching different applications has become a critical research direction in TENGs. This review provides a historical summary of the development of SL-TENGs in the past few years and analyzes the key factors affecting their electrical output performance. The exciting achievements of different constructions of SL-TENGs for practical applications is also demonstrated such as energy harvesting, self-powered sensing, and self-powered cathodic protection. Finally, the development prospects of SL-TENGs and the significant challenges for their further development is discussed.