liana

American  

[lee-ah-nuh, -an-uh] / liˈɑ nə, -ˈæn ə /

Also liane

noun

1. any of various usually woody vines that may climb as high as the tree canopy in a tropical forest.

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liana British  

/ lɪˈɑːnə, lɪˈɑːn /

noun

1. any of various woody climbing plants mainly of tropical forests

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Other Word Forms

• lianoid adjective

Etymology

Origin of liana

1790–1800; earlier liannes (plural), apparently misspelling of French lianes, plural of liane, derivative of lier to bind; spelling with -a is Latinized or pseudo-Spanish

Example Sentences

He was asked by liana Bouzali, Morgan Stanley’s global head of derivatives, distribution and structuring, how he would construct a hedge-fund portfolio from scratch today.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 28, 2026

Three days later, observers caught sight of Rakus perched in a tree and eating leaves of Fibraurea tinctoria, a climbing liana known as akar kuning.

From Science Magazine • May 1, 2024

He obtains dried water hyacinths and liana vines — both considered destructive plants — from his home country, Thailand.

From New York Times • Jun. 8, 2013

The Mbuti employed long nets of twined liana bark to catch their prey, sometimes stretching the nets for 300 feet.

From Slate • Oct. 3, 2012

Directly above him, at a height of twenty or more feet, a huge liana, of the trumpet species, stretched across from tree to tree.

From The Desert Home The Adventures of a Lost Family in the Wilderness by Reid, Mayne