ivy

¹

[ ahy-vee ]

noun

, plural i·vies.

1. Also called English ivy. a climbing vine, Hedera helix, having smooth, shiny, evergreen leaves, small, yellowish flowers, and black berries, grown as an ornamental.
2. any of various other climbing or trailing plants.

adjective

1. (often initial capital letter) Ivy League ( def 2 ).
2. New England. mountain laurel.

Ivy

²

[ ahy-vee ]

noun

1. a female given name.

ivy

/ ˈaɪvɪ /

noun

1. any woody climbing or trailing araliaceous plant of the Old World genus Hedera, esp H. helix, having lobed evergreen leaves and black berry-like fruits
2. any of various other climbing or creeping plants, such as Boston ivy, poison ivy, and ground ivy

Derived Forms

• ˈivy-ˌlike, adjective

Other Words From

• ivy·like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of ivy¹

before 900; Middle English ivi; Old English ifig; akin to German Efeu

Word History and Origins

Origin of ivy¹

Old English īfig; related to Old High German ebah, perhaps to Greek iphuon a plant

Example Sentences

Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Ivy League graduate Hegseth has in recent years worked as a conservative commentator.

From BBC

"Ivy", from Hawke’s Bay in New Zealand, told police there what had happened after her cousin came to her aid.

From BBC

They also abandoned millions of clueless Americans who’d been condescended to and lied to by pre-Trump Republicans like George W. Bush, as much as by liberal glass-ceiling breakers at PBS, NPR, The New York Times and at Ivy League universities.

From Salon

What will today's Ivy League alums, caught in what Yale Law professor Daniel Markovits dubs "The Meritocracy Trap," decide to do about what Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen describes as "The Road to Serfdom"?

From Salon

What will today's Ivy League alums, caught now in what Yale Law School professor Daniel Markovits dubs "The Meritocracy Trap," decide about Americans' submission to our own approximation of what Harvard political theorist and classicist Danielle Allen describes as "The Road to Serfdom" — the casino-like financing, the vicious political demagoguery and the caste-like inequities that Trump, a corrupt Supreme Court and a paralyzed Congress have all but normalized?

From Salon