island
Americannoun
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islands
plural
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a tract of land completely surrounded by water, and not large enough to be called a continent.
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something resembling an island, especially in being isolated or having little or no direct communication with others.
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a raised platform with a counter or other work surface on top situated in the middle area of a room, especially a kitchen, so as to permit access from all sides.
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a low concrete platform for gasoline pumps at an automotive service station.
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a clump of woodland in a prairie.
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an isolated hill.
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Anatomy. an isolated portion of tissue differing in structure from the surrounding tissue.
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Railroads. a platform or building between sets of tracks.
verb (used with object)
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to make into an island.
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to dot with islands.
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to place on an island; isolate.
noun
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a mass of land that is surrounded by water and is smaller than a continent
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See traffic island
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anatomy a part, structure, or group of cells distinct in constitution from its immediate surroundings
verb
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to cause to become an island
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to intersperse with islands
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to place on an island; insulate; isolate
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of island
First recorded before 900; Middle English iland, Old English īgland, īland, variant of īegland, from īeg “island” (cognate with Old Norse ey ) + land land; spelling with -s- by association with isle
Explanation
An island is a piece of land that is surrounded on all sides by water. Some islands are so small that a beach chair and umbrella barely fit on them and some are big enough to contain a whole nation. To get to an island you must take a boat, bridge or airplane — be a strong swimmer. If you can get there by land it’s not an island, though it may be a peninsula, like Florida. There are many famous islands, like Manhattan and the islands of Hawaii. Things that are free-standing can also be called islands, like the island made of cabinets and a counter that is found in some kitchens — it's not connected to anything else.
Vocabulary lists containing island
Physical Geography - Introductory
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Physical Geography - Middle School
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Physical Geography - High School
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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.
See Examples For:
Felix Salmon is joined by David Skeel, who served as chair on the oversight board that helped the island regain economic stability and detailed the saga of this debt crisis in his book Promise Land.
From Slate ● Oct. 12, 2026
For Americans living on the island, there were fears that the latest incident would create tensions within the community.
From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026
When they eventually arrive, they will have to navigate through a narrow gap created in the atoll's reef by the British in 1963 - the last time the island was inhabited.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
The current dispute between China and Taiwan dates to a civil war between the nationalist forces of Chiang Kai-shek, who retreated to the island in 1949 after being defeated by Mao Zedong's communist fighters.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026
Somehow the hero would have to make the rocks seem more dangerous, the reef more terrifying, the pale sands bleak and lonely—make the whole island seem like a creepy, scary place.
From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr
Military analysts, for instance, say it has established electronic warfare units on an archipelago of man-made islands in the South China Sea.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
For example, one world's mechanics, based on those from the free 2014 game Mirror Isles by Alan Hazelden, sees players use mirror reflections to swap places across islands.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
People crave islands of stability, including by keeping their beauty rituals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
In Antigua and Barbuda, a state named after its two main tropical islands, the royals will attend a parade to mark 45 years of independence.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
When three cubs were born ten weeks ago, rangers visited all fifty or so of the inhabited islands to share the good news.
From "Tiger Boy" by Mitali Perkins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
