divan

[ dih-van, -vahn or especially for 1, dahy-van ]

/ dɪˈvæn, -ˈvɑn or especially for 1, ˈdaɪ væn /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR divan ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a sofa or couch, usually without arms or back, often usable as a bed.

a long, cushioned seat, usually without arms or back, placed against a wall, as in Asian countries.

a council of state in Turkey and other countries of the Middle East.

any council, committee, or commission.

(in the Middle East)

a council chamber, judgment hall, audience chamber, or bureau of state.
a large building used for some official or public purpose, as a custom house.

a smoking room, as in connection with a tobacco shop.

a collection of poems, especially a collection in Arabic or Persian of poems by one poet.

RELATED WORDS

lounge, sofa, davenport, seat

Nearby words

Origin of divan

1580–90; < Turkish < Persian dīwān, orig. dēvan booklet (whence account book, office, council, bench)

Definition for divan (2 of 2)

divan

[ dih-van ]

/ dɪˈvæn /

adjective (esp. of chicken or turkey breast)

sliced and baked in a casserole with broccoli and hollandaise sauce.

Origin of divan

of uncertain origin; perhaps a representation in E spelling of French divin divine

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for divan

I carried her to the divan, and went to look for him, but he was not in the house, and the servants were gone to bed.
Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the Show|Robert W. Chambers|February 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Marlon Brando yelled at the audience about dead children from a divan clad in a purple muumuu.
My Brush With the King of Pop|Gideon Yago|June 26, 2009|DAILY BEAST
This divan is protected from rain by the semi-dome, and from the sun by curtains or mats hung across the arched opening.
A History of Art in Chalda & Assyria, v. 1|Georges Perrot
He managed to grasp the corner of the blanket on the divan as he went, and he dragged it behind him.
The Voice of the Pack|Edison Marshall

With a loud, wild cry, she sank back upon the divan, and a torrent of tears gushed from her eyes.
Frederick The Great and His Family|L. Muhlbach
The short top of the L, not cut off from the rest of the room, was installed as a cabinet de toilette, but it had a divan.
The Pretty Lady |Arnold E. Bennett
McKelvie glanced hastily about and then striding to the divan he bent down and sniffed at it critically.
The Mystery of the Hidden Room|Marion Harvey

British Dictionary definitions for divan

divan

/ (dɪˈvæn) /

noun

a backless sofa or couch, designed to be set against a wall
a bed resembling such a couch

(esp formerly) a room for smoking and drinking, as in a coffee shop

a Muslim law court, council chamber, or counting house
a Muslim council of state

a collection of poems

(in Muslim law) an account book

Also called (for senses 2–5): diwan

Word Origin for divan

C16: from Turkish dīvān, from Persian dīwān

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

Word Origin and History for divan

divan

1580s, "Oriental council of state," from Turkish divan, from Arabic diwan, from Persian devan "bundle of written sheets, small book, collection of poems" (as in the "Divan i-Hafiz"), related to debir "writer."

Sense evolved through "book of accounts," to "office of accounts," "custom house," "council chamber," then to "long, cushioned seat," such as are found along the walls in Middle Eastern council chambers (see couch). The sofa/couch sense was taken into English 1702; the "book of poems" sense in 1823.