Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

island

/ˈaɪlənd/

Word Rarity Common

Frequency: 5.01 in modern English

Syllables
is-land
IPA
/ˈaɪlənd/
7
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A contiguous area of land, smaller than a continent, totally surrounded by water.

noun

A contiguous area of land, smaller than a continent, partially surrounded by water; a peninsula; a half-island.

noun

An entity surrounded by other entities that are very different from itself.

noun

A superstructure on an aircraft carrier's deck.

noun

A traffic island.

noun

A roundabout; a traffic circle.

noun

A bench, counter, etc., that is not connected to a wall or other furniture and which can be used from any side.

noun

A bench, counter, etc., that is not connected to a wall or other furniture and which can be used from any side.

Example Sentences

Etymology

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 island, iland, yland (“island”), West Frisian eilân (“island”), Saterland Frisian Ailound (“island”), Dutch eiland (“island”), Low German Eiland (“island”), German Eiland (“island”), Swedish ö (“island”), Öland (“Sweden's second largest island”), Danish ø (“island”), Norwegian øy (“island”), øyland (“large island”), Icelandic eyland (“island”). The insertion of ⟨s⟩—a 16th century spelling modification—is due to a change in spelling to the unrelated term isle, which previously lacked s (cf. Middle English ile, yle). The re-addition was mistakenly carried over to include iland as well. Related also to German Aue (“water-meadow”), Latin aqua (“water”). More at ea.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: *lendʰ-, iland, īeġland, *auwjuland, *awjōlandą, *awjō

Usage

Inflected Forms

islands (plural) iland (alternative, obsolete) yland (alternative, obsolete) ylond (alternative, obsolete) ylelond (alternative, obsolete) islands (present, singular) islanding (participle, present) islanded (participle, past) islanded (past) the Island (canonical)

Derived Forms

Coalisland interisland intraisland Island Islandbridge islander islandful islandhood islandic islandish islandless islandlike

Phrases

ABC island ABC Islands Absecon Island Adams Island Admiralty Islands Aegadean Islands Aegadian Islands Aegean Islands

Frequently Paired Words

archipelago insular isle islet continent atoll cay key

Synonyms

Prince Edward Island ait holm oasis island ey isle

Homonyms

eiland

Rhymes With

highland hyland weiland niland eiland nyland wyland nylund byland reiland water island young island

Questions

How do you pronounce island?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈaɪlənd/.
What does island mean?
A contiguous area of land, smaller than a continent, totally surrounded by water.
Where does island come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce island

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “island”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈaɪlənd/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “island”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “island” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.