island

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A piece of land that is completely surrounded by water

   They spent their holiday on a small tropical island.

2. 2
   noun

   A flat unit of counter or storage standing on its own in the middle of a kitchen

   We chopped the vegetables on the kitchen island.

3. 3
   noun

   A small raised area in the middle of a road for safety

   She waited on the traffic island before crossing the rest of the road.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Island is a native English word descended from Old English īegland, whose first element, īeg, meant “island” and came from a root associated with water. It is unrelated to isle, but mistaken association with that word caused an s to be inserted into island during the 16th century.

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ékʷeh₂ Proto-Germanic *awjō Proto-Indo-European *lendʰ- Proto-Indo-European *-om Proto-Germanic *landą Proto-Germanic *awjōlandą Proto-West Germanic *auwjuland Old English īeġland Middle English ilond English iland English island From earlier iland, from Middle English iland, yland, ylond, from Old English īeġland, from Proto-West Germanic *auwjuland, from Proto-Germanic *awjōlandą (from Proto-Germanic *awjō (“island, waterland, meadow”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ekʷeh₂) + *landą (“land”), equivalent to ey + land. Doublet of Öland. Cognate with Scots is…

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