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• olive
  olive

  noun

  an evergreen tree, Olea europaea, of Mediterranean and other warm regions, cultivated chiefly for its fruit.
• Olive
  Olive

  noun

  a female given name.

olive

¹ American  

[ol-iv] / ˈɒl ɪv /

noun

• olives
  plural

1. an evergreen tree, Olea europaea, of Mediterranean and other warm regions, cultivated chiefly for its fruit.

2. the fruit of this tree, a small oval drupe, eaten as a relish and used as a source of oil.

3. Also called olive wood. the wood of this tree, valued for ornamental work.

4. the foliage of this tree.

5. a wreath of it.

6. any of various related or similar trees.

7. olive branch.

8. the ocher green or dull yellow green of the unripe olive fruit.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or made of olives, their foliage, or their fruit.

2. of the color olive.

3. tinged with this color.

   an olive complexion.

Olive ² American  

[ol-iv] / ˈɒl ɪv /

noun

1. a female given name.

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olive British  

/ ˈɒlɪv /

noun

1. an evergreen oleaceous tree, Olea europaea, of the Mediterranean region but cultivated elsewhere, having white fragrant flowers, and edible shiny black fruits

2. the fruit of this plant, eaten as a relish and used as a source of olive oil

3. the wood of the olive tree, used for ornamental work

4. any of various trees or shrubs resembling the olive

5. 1. a yellow-green colour

   2. ( as adjective )

      an olive coat

6. an angler's name for the dun of various mayflies or an artificial fly in imitation of this

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or made of the olive tree, its wood, or its fruit

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subolive
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• olives
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of olive

1150–1200; Middle English < Old French < Latin olīva, by-form of olea < dialectal Greek *elaíwa olive, olive tree; cf. oil, oleaceous

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Explanation

An olive is a very small fruit, although you probably think of it as a savory snack. You might find an olive on a salad, on a pizza, or even on a toothpick in your martini. Olives are so naturally bitter that they're basically inedible unless they've been treated — cured with lye or salt, and then fermented. In addition to the olives you see in jars on grocery store shelves, olive trees yield an expensive, durable wood; and of course, olive oil. You can also describe the yellowish-green color of an unripe olive as olive. And when someone offers "an olive branch," they are trying to make peace or come to an understanding.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

olive Olive olives

"Our homes, the graves of our loved ones, our olive trees, our lands -- it all risks being torn from our hands," says Nejla Isik, pointing to the area on a map.

From Barron's ● Nov. 6, 2026

California’s first sea turtle nest appeared Sept. 16, when an olive ridley laid a clutch of eggs near the Surfside community in Seal Beach.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026

My last meal would be: a Mediterranean- and Turkish-infused dish, like meatballs with eggplants and artichokes in good olive oil and some rice on the side.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

I crisped the breadcrumbs separately in a pan with olive oil, red pepper flakes and the zest of an entire lemon, then spooned them over the cabbage just before serving.

From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026

“Can substitute with olive oil,” in another place.

From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen

She said her grandmother, Olive, did not have the freedom to pursue music because of economic and societal barriers as a young, working-class wartime bride.

From BBC ● Nov. 10, 2026

Olive ridleys are normally found throughout tropical regions of the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans, with large nesting populations in Mexico, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026

Almost all the homes on West Palm Street between Olive and Glen were wiped out in January 2025.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2026

Make the black bean and Olive Bar tomato soups.

From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026

The kind Olive would give Ruby when she has Band-Aids.

From "Shouting at the Rain" by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

They’re also excellent browned and added to Mediterranean-inspired bowls with rice, lemon hummus, feta, olives and a chopped cucumber-tomato salad.

From Salon ● Nov. 5, 2026

“I’m not one of those people who puts out olives and almonds, or chips.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026

Some begin swiftly wrapping up the olives to leave.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

Ashtiyeh and another AFP photographer, John Wessels, were near the northern village of Aqraba where they noticed an Israeli soldier detaining a man as local Palestinians picked olives.

From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026

Odd sterling servers are popular, for spooning out deviled eggs, removing pimentos from olives, cracking quail legs.

From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett

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