island
[ahy-luh nd]
- a tract of land completely surrounded by water, and not large enough to be called a continent.
- something resembling an island, especially in being isolated or having little or no direct communication with others.
- 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.
- safety island.
- a low concrete platform for gasoline pumps at an automotive service station.
- a clump of woodland in a prairie.
- an isolated hill.
- Anatomy. an isolated portion of tissue differing in structure from the surrounding tissue.
- Railroads. a platform or building between sets of tracks.
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- to make into an island.
- to dot with islands.
- to place on an island; isolate.
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Origin of island
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
peninsulareefarchipelagoenclaveisletislesanctuarybarshelterretreatkeyhavenrefugeatollcayExamples from the Web for islands
Contemporary Examples
In 1957, the islands came under repeated shelling by Mainland--or as it was then called, “Red”-- China.
During a debate, the candidates were asked about the islands.
The two islands are now tourist sites for visitors from Taiwan and mainland China.
Nixon said defending the two islands was “a matter of principle.”
Islands overrun by flawed people, both indigenous and imperialist.
Historical Examples
But my father had worked as far as the Grass Flats and beyond them, to a place of islands.'
The Trail BookMary Austin
Let us hope that these islands may one day be made free and independent.
The Life of Horatio Lord NelsonRobert Southey
The voyage from Singapore to the Islands was without incident.
The Monster MenEdgar Rice Burroughs
Of course if the islands were the Indies, the people must be Indians.
Introductory American HistoryHenry Eldridge Bourne
What islands did Columbus find and claim for Spain on his first voyage?
Introductory American HistoryHenry Eldridge Bourne
Islands
- the Islands NZ the islands of the South Pacific
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island
- a mass of land that is surrounded by water and is smaller than a continent
- See traffic island
- anatomy a part, structure, or group of cells distinct in constitution from its immediate surroundingsRelated adjective: insular
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- to cause to become an island
- to intersperse with islands
- to place on an island; insulate; isolate
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Word Origin
Old English īgland, from īg island + land; s inserted through influence of isle
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 islands
island
n.
1590s, earlier yland (c.1300), from Old English igland "island," from ieg "island" (from Proto-Germanic *aujo "thing on the water," from PIE *akwa- "water;" see aqua-) + land "land." Spelling modified 15c. by association with similar but unrelated isle. An Old English cognate was ealand "river-land, watered place, meadow by a river." In place names, Old English ieg is often used of "slightly raised dry ground offering settlement sites in areas surrounded by marsh or subject to flooding" [Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names]. Related: Islander.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
island
(ī′lənd)- An isolated tissue or group of cells that is separated from the surrounding tissues by a groove or is marked by a difference in structure or function.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
island
[ī′lənd]
- A land mass, especially one smaller than a continent, entirely surrounded by water.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.