ebony

1 of 2

noun

eb·​o·​ny ˈe-bə-nē How to pronounce ebony (audio)
plural ebonies
1
: a hard heavy blackish wood yielded by various tropical chiefly southeast Asian trees (genus Diospyros of the family Ebenaceae, the ebony family)
2
a
: a tree yielding ebony
b
: any of several trees yielding wood like ebony

ebony

2 of 2

adjective

1
: made of or resembling ebony
2
: black, dark

Examples of ebony in a Sentence

Adjective the ebony loudspeakers on their chrome stands look very sleek and modern
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The Olympian showed off her new Diana Mini Tote bag in caramel and ebony, which retails for $4,200. Charna Flam, Peoplemag, 10 Feb. 2024 Ancient ebony pillars Pillars dating to at least 1,200 years ago were also found inside the mosque. Moira Ritter, Miami Herald, 7 Feb. 2024 English decor style uses a lot of white with black doors, in ebony or mahogany. Mark Holgate, Vogue, 26 Jan. 2024 The kitchen, butler’s pantry, and laundry room all feature a glossy mix of ebony and fire engine red cabinetry and stainless-steel countertops. Mark David, Robb Report, 23 Jan. 2024 So many colors — including pink, light gray, navy, and ebony — are going for as little as $8, but only for a limited time. Nicola Fumo, Peoplemag, 25 Nov. 2023 In February, the artist released her first EP, an R&B album aptly titled ebony. Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 27 Oct. 2023 The table is offered in either rustic wormwood or a darker ebony rustic. Shannon Quimby, Better Homes & Gardens, 31 Oct. 2023 What was your mindset going into ebony? ebony is a love story gone wrong based around a very specific time of my life. Mark Elibert, Billboard, 18 Apr. 2023
Adjective
From warm-toned medium shades to neutral, ebony brown hues, there’s a color fit for bronzing and contouring on any skin tone. Alyssa Brascia, Peoplemag, 12 Nov. 2023 Originally from Montana, Middleton moved to San Diego in 2014 from Cameroon, after having finished a contract with Taylor Guitars on legal and sustainable ebony wood procurement for guitar manufacturing. The Hub, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Sep. 2023 There are infinite variations: ebony, charcoal, jet, licorice—the list goes on. Todd Plummer, Robb Report, 16 Aug. 2023 Prada just sent models down the runway at Milan Fashion Week wearing super long, ebony black false lashes that completely covered their eyes. Kara Nesvig, Allure, 23 Sep. 2022 The kitchen provides granite counters, a glass tile backsplash, Sub-Zero refrigerator, Dacor gas cooktop, double ovens and ebony maple cabinets. Dallas News, 14 Mar. 2020 Meanwhile, the Black Cat Incident, as it was dubbed, became another chapter in the Cubs' long-running history of misery, with the ebony feline—a notorious symbol of bad luck, of course—blamed for jinxing the team. Paul Lukas, SI.com, 6 Sep. 2019 Calder would take a break from sculptures and mobiles to craft a silver milk skimmer with a spiderweb design or an ebony toilet paper holder shaped like a hand. Jennie Yabroff, Town & Country, 20 Oct. 2017 The white-walled living room features ebony wood floors and a wall fireplace. Neal J. Leitereg, latimes.com, 15 July 2017

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ebony.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

probably from Late Latin hebeninus of ebony, from Greek ebeninos, from ebenos ebony, from Egyptian hbnj

First Known Use

Noun

1597, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1597, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of ebony was in 1597

Dictionary Entries Near ebony

Cite this Entry

“Ebony.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ebony. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

ebony

1 of 2 noun
eb·​o·​ny ˈeb-ə-nē How to pronounce ebony (audio)
plural ebonies
1
: a hard heavy blackish wood of various tropical chiefly southeast Asian trees related to the persimmon
2
: a tree that produces ebony

ebony

2 of 2 adjective
1
: made of or resembling ebony
2

More from Merriam-Webster on ebony

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