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Ian

1 American  
[ee-uhn, ee-ahn, ahy-uhn] / ˈi ən, ˈi ɑn, ˈaɪ ən /

noun

  1. a male given name, Scottish form of John.


-ian 2 American  
  1. a suffix with the same meaning and properties as -an, though -ian is now the more productive of the two suffixes in recent coinages, especially when the base noun ends in a consonant: Orwellian; Washingtonian .


-ian British  

suffix

  1. a variant of -an

    Etonian

    Johnsonian

"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

Etymology

Origin of -ian

Extracted from Latin loanwords in which -ānus (adjective suffix) is joined to stems ending in i; -an

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Managing Partner Ian Beatty said that SecondQuarter, which has invested in businesses including Sequoia Capital-backed design-software developer Canva, has secured early commitments from both new and existing investors.

From The Wall Street Journal

Lifelong Middletown resident Ian Reddinger, 37, recalls relatives telling war stories about surviving the accident, but the businessman and borough council member now looks forward to a promised economic upswing.

From The Wall Street Journal

Ian Buchanan, a sheep and dairy farmer based outside Dungiven, County Londonderry, said there is "a state of shock" among the farming community.

From BBC

As the journalist and editor Ian Hislop put it when I interviewed him for my documentary series, What's The Monarchy For?

From BBC

This is the easy part - the difficult one is how to replace such a world-class talent, who is third in the club's all-time scoring list behind Ian Rush and Roger Hunt.

From BBC