Meaning of island in English

Table of contents
  1. Pronunciation
  2. Noun
    1. Etymology
    2. Definitions

  1. Pronunciation

    /ˈaɪlənd/

    US accent Play button

    UK accent Play button

  1. Noun

    island

    Etymology

    Old English īegland, from īeg ‘island’ (from a base meaning ‘watery, watered’) + land. The change in the spelling of the first syllable in the 16th century was due to association with the unrelated word isle

    Definitions

    1. a land mass (smaller than a continent) that is surrounded by water
  2. 2. a zone or area resembling an island

Famous quotes

  • « Every summer my husband and I pack our suitcases, load our kids into the car, and drive from tense, crowded New York City to my family's cottage in Maine. It's on an island, with stretches of sea and sandy beaches, rocky coasts, and pine trees. We barbecue, swim, lie around, and try to do nothing. »
    Hope Davis
  • « The general knowledge of time on the island depends, curiously enough, on the direction of the wind. »
    John Millington Synge
  • « I have a musical called Goodbye and Good Luck, based on a Grace Paley short story. I also have King Island Christmas, and there are 20 different productions of it this year. »
    David Friedman
  • « The design of those commissioners, frigates and warlike force is directed rather against Long Island and these your Honors' possessions, than to the imagined reform of New England. »
    Peter Stuyvesant
  • « We live on an island surrounded by a sea of ignorance. As our island of knowledge grows, so does the shore of our ignorance. »
    John Archibald Wheeler

Browse dictionary