noun
- a tract of land completely surrounded by water, and not large enough to be called a continent.
- something resembling an island, especially in being isolated or having little or no direct communication with others.
- a raised platform with a counter or other work surface on top situated in the middle area of a room, especially a kitchen, so as to permit access from all sides.
- safety island.
- a low concrete platform for gasoline pumps at an automotive service station.
- a clump of woodland in a prairie.
- an isolated hill.
- Anatomy. an isolated portion of tissue differing in structure from the surrounding tissue.
- Railroads. a platform or building between sets of tracks.
verb (used with object)
- to make into an island.
- to dot with islands.
- to place on an island; isolate.
pl n
- the Islands NZ the islands of the South Pacific
noun
- a mass of land that is surrounded by water and is smaller than a continent
- See traffic island
- anatomy a part, structure, or group of cells distinct in constitution from its immediate surroundingsRelated adjective: insular
verb (tr) rare
- to cause to become an island
- to intersperse with islands
- to place on an island; insulate; isolate
1590s, earlier yland (c.1300), from Old English igland “island,” from ieg “island” (from Proto-Germanic *aujo “thing on the water,” from PIE *akwa- “water;” see aqua-) + land “land.” Spelling modified 15c. by association with similar but unrelated isle. An Old English cognate was ealand “river-land, watered place, meadow by a river.” In place names, Old English ieg is often used of “slightly raised dry ground offering settlement sites in areas surrounded by marsh or subject to flooding” [Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names]. Related: Islander.
n.
- An isolated tissue or group of cells that is separated from the surrounding tissues by a groove or is marked by a difference in structure or function.
- A land mass, especially one smaller than a continent, entirely surrounded by water.