Island Definition

īlənd
islands
noun
A land mass not as large as a continent, surrounded by water.
Webster's New World
Anything like an island in position or isolation.
Webster's New World
A tissue or cluster of cells differing from surrounding tissue in formation, etc.
Webster's New World
Webster's New World
Webster's New World
verb
To make into or like an island; isolate.
Webster's New World
To intersperse with or as with islands.
A prairie islanded with wooded tracts.
Webster's New World
Wiktionary
pronoun
(in New York City) Long Island (in New York State)
Wiktionary
(in British Columbia) Vancouver Island.
Wiktionary

Other Word Forms of Island

Noun

Singular:
island
Plural:
islands

Origin of Island

  • From earlier iland, from Middle English iland, yland, ylond, from Old English īġland, īeġland, ēaland (“island”), from Old English īeġ (“island”) (from Proto-Germanic *awiz, *awjō (“island, water, waterland, meadow”), from Proto-Indo-European *akw- (“water”)) + land (“land”), equivalent to ea +‎ land. Cognate with Scots iland, yland (“island”), West Frisian eilân (“island”), Saterland Frisian Ailound (“island”), Dutch eiland (“island”), Low German Eiland (“island”), German Eiland (“island”), Danish øland (“island”), Icelandic eyland (“island”). The erroneous insertion of s—a late (16th century) spelling modification—is due to unrelated term isle. Related also to German Aue (“water-meadow”), Latin aqua (“water”). More at ea.

    From Wiktionary

  • Alteration (influenced by isle) of Middle English ilond from Old English īegland īg, īeg akw-ā- in Indo-European roots land land lendh- in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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