Oliphant

American

[ol-uh-fuhnt] / ˈɒl ə fənt /

noun

Margaret Wilson, 1828–97, Scottish novelist.

Oliphant British

/ ˈɒlɪfənt /

noun

Sir Mark Laurence Elwin. 1901–2000, British nuclear physicist, born in Australia

"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

Example Sentences

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Oliphant

Many years ago, when I was a newbie newspaper reporter in the Boston Globe’s Washington bureau, one of my colleagues, Tom Oliphant, gave me a tip that I’ve cherished ever since.

From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026

Retiree Pattie Oliphant bemoaned the “sad state of affairs” for Carney, his family and the office of mayor.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026

Oliphant and Gerstenzang are former Times staff writers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2025

For his part, Oliphant was a student of his subjects.

From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2025

The project was an outgrowth of the secret research Oliphant had been conducting at Birmingham.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023