Ian

[ ee-uh n, ee-ahn, ahy-uh n ]

/ ˈi ən, ˈi ɑn, ˈaɪ ən /

noun

a male given name, Scottish form of John.

QUIZZES

CHALLENGE YOURSELF WITH THESE WORDS FROM "LITTLE WOMEN"

"Little Women" may be a classic, but that doesn't mean we all know the meanings of the vocab words from the book. Can you define these words correctly and make Jo proud?

Question 1 of 10

earnest

full seriousness, as of intention or purpose.

a feeling of dread, anxiety, or anguish.

urgent character; imperativeness; insistence; importunateness.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Definition for ian (2 of 2)

-ian

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

Origin of -ian

extracted from L loanwords in which -ānus -an is joined to stems ending in i

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for ian

The medical record, from an Ebola case, made for grim reading, but Dr. Ian Crozier could not put it down.
The Daily Beast’s Best Longreads, Dec 8-14, 2014|William Boot|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Oh, and that his profile on Twitter and his name elsewhere say “Ian Miles Cheong” whereas mine says “Arthur Chu.”
Rage Against GamerGate’s Hate Machine: What I Got For Speaking Up|Arthur Chu|November 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Update: Ian Sams, a spokesman for the DNC, has informed me that the airbone creature was, a Cliff Hawk.
Dems' Unspeakably Lame Bridgegate Stunt|Olivia Nuzzi|September 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But history professor Ian Morris also argues that war has made humanity safer and richer over the last 10,000 years.
War! What Is It Good For? A Lot|Nick Romeo|August 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST

He is the co-author, with Ian Gold, of Suspicious Minds: How Culture Shapes Madness.
You, Too, Could Be a Homicidal Zealot|Joel Gold|July 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
At last they found themselves in a wild, rugged portion of the country, where Ian had never before been.
The Wee Scotch Piper|Madeline Brandeis
These had set hand-maidens to work, with the result that Ian felt himself spruce as a newly opened pink.
Foes|Mary Johnston
Ian, on the contrary, was an admirable producer of all that was interesting in others; and in Davison that all was much.
The Invader|Margaret L. Woods
No one seemed to have kept Ian's desk tidy, his papers in order, or his clothes properly mended.
The Invader|Margaret L. Woods
They walked it almost in silence—upon Ian's part in silence.
Foes|Mary Johnston

British Dictionary definitions for ian

-ian

suffix

a variant of -an Etonian; Johnsonian

Word Origin for -ian

from Latin -iānus

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

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Ian