divan

¹

[dih-van]

adjective

1. (especially of chicken or turkey breast) sliced and baked in a casserole with broccoli and hollandaise sauce.

divan

²

[dih-van, -vahn, dahy-van]

noun

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

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

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

4. any council, committee, or commission.

5. (in the Middle East)

   1. a council chamber, judgment hall, audience chamber, or bureau of state.

   2. a large building used for some official or public purpose, as a custom house.

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

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

divan

/ dɪˈvæn /

noun

1. 1. a backless sofa or couch, designed to be set against a wall

   2. a bed resembling such a couch

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

3. 1. a Muslim law court, council chamber, or counting house

   2. a Muslim council of state

4. a collection of poems

5. (in Muslim law) an account book

Word History and Origins

Origin of divan¹

First recorded in 1935–40; named after its place of origin, the Divan Parisienne Restaurant, in the Chatham Hotel, Manhattan, New York; divine

Origin of divan²

First recorded in 1580–90; from Ottoman Turkish dīvān “state council,” from Arabic dīwān, from Persian dīwān, originally dēvan “booklet” (whence “account book, archive, office, council, bench”)

Word History and Origins

Origin of divan¹

C16: from Turkish dīvān, from Persian dīwān

Example Sentences

The baroness sprawled on the divan and yawned.

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He had killed Mr Longworth with a hammer earlier the same day, shattering his skull with 13 blows to the head, and hid the body in a divan bed in the apartment.

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His body was then hidden in the bottom of a divan bed, while Mosquera waited for Albert to come home.

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He had killed Mr Longworth with a hammer earlier the same day, shattering his skull, and hid the body in a divan bed in the apartment.

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He is also accused of killing Mr Longworth with a hammer earlier on the same day and of then hiding his body in a divan bed.

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