ivory
the hard white substance, a variety of dentin, composing the main part of the tusks of elephants, walruses, etc.
this substance when taken from a dead animal and used to make carvings, billiard balls, etc.
some substance resembling this.
an article made of this substance, as a carving or a billiard ball.
a tusk, as of an elephant.
dentin of any kind.
Slang. a tooth, or the teeth.
ivories, Slang.
the keys of a piano or of a similar keyboard instrument.
dice.
Also called vegetable ivory. the hard endosperm of the ivory nut, used for ornamental purposes, for buttons, etc.
a creamy or yellowish white.
a smooth paper finish produced by coating with beeswax before calendering.
consisting or made of ivory.
of the color ivory.
Origin of ivory
1Other words from ivory
- i·vo·ry·like, adjective
Words Nearby ivory
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use ivory in a sentence
Nearly two dozen species, including the iconic ivory-billed woodpecker and several kinds of freshwater mussels, were declared extinct this week by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, after years of surveys failed to turn up any of them.
These pretty wooden pumpkins, which come in a set that includes ivory and sage shades, look like the real thing.
In 1924, famed Cornell University ornithologist Arthur “Doc” Allen took the world’s first photograph of the ivory bill in Florida — just days before two collectors shot the mating pair.
Ivory-billed woodpecker officially declared extinct, along with 22 other species | Dino Grandoni | September 29, 2021 | Washington PostI set about cleaning, dipping a rag into a bowl of milk and carefully wiping down the ivory keys.
Should parents cry in front of their kids? I asked a psychologist, and my 9-year-old. | Cathy Alter | April 8, 2021 | Washington PostMilk, according to ’70s-era design magazines, made ivory, well, ivory-er, and I was hard at work when my father stumbled onto the scene.
Should parents cry in front of their kids? I asked a psychologist, and my 9-year-old. | Cathy Alter | April 8, 2021 | Washington Post
Soon his coffers were overflowing with revenue from rubber, palm oil, and ivory.
‘Argo’ in the Congo: The Ghosts of the Stanleyville Hostage Crisis | Nina Strochlic | November 23, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThese goods were probably exchanged with Gedi inhabitants for animal skins and ivory.
Kenya Has Its Own Machu Picchu—the Lost Town of Gedi | Nina Strochlic | September 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe new regs say: “Personal possession of legally acquired items containing elephant ivory will remain legal.”
“We can only save African elephants if China and Japan ban the ivory trade,” Thornton told me.
Today, ivory prices are at record highs, having tripled since that 2008 auction, up to around $1,500 a pound.
Stradiuarius made a few instruments inlaid with ebony and ivory round the edges.
Violins and Violin Makers | Joseph PearceHer Nazarites were whiter than snow, purer than milk, more ruddy than the old ivory, fairer than the sapphire.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version | VariousGwynne thought her a creature of infinite possibilities, beside whom Isabel was a statue in ivory.
Ancestors | Gertrude AthertonOf course, it was not smoke obscuring the moon, she decided; it was a lamp, upheld by an ivory figure—a lamp with a Chinese shade.
Dope | Sax RohmerThe Chinese possess marvellous skill in carving ivory, tortoiseshell, and wood.
A Woman's Journey Round the World | Ida Pfeiffer
British Dictionary definitions for ivory (1 of 2)
/ (ˈaɪvərɪ, -vrɪ) /
a hard smooth creamy white variety of dentine that makes up a major part of the tusks of elephants, walruses, and similar animals
(as modifier): ivory ornaments
a tusk made of ivory
a yellowish-white colour; cream
(as adjective): ivory shoes
a substance resembling elephant tusk
an ornament, etc, made of ivory
black ivory obsolete Black slaves collectively
Origin of ivory
1- See also ivories
Derived forms of ivory
- ivory-like, adjective
British Dictionary definitions for Ivory (2 of 2)
/ (ˈaɪvərɪ) /
James. born 1928, US film director. With the producer Ismael Merchant, his films include Shakespeare Wallah (1964), Heat and Dust (1983), A Room With a View (1986), and The Golden Bowl (2000)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for ivory
[ ī′və-rē ]
The hard, smooth, yellowish-white substance forming the teeth and tusks of certain animals, such as the tusks of elephants and walruses and the teeth of certain whales. Ivory is composed of dentin.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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