ivory

See also: Ivory

English

An ivory decoration (1)-(3)

Etymology

From Middle English yvory, ivorie, from Anglo-Norman ivurie, from Latin eboreus (“in or of ivory”) adjective of ebur (“ivory”) (genitive eboris), from Demotic yb (“ivory, Elephantine”) (compare Coptic ⲓⲏⲃ (iēb, “Elephantine”)), from Egyptian ꜣbw (“elephant, ivory, Elephantine”). Displaced native Old English elpendbān (literally “elephant bone”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈaɪv(ə)ɹi/
Audio (US) (file)
Hyphenation: i‧vo‧ry, ivo‧ry

Noun

ivory (countable and uncountable, plural ivories)

(uncountable) The hard white form of dentin which forms the tusks of elephants, walruses and other animals.
A creamy white color, the color of ivory.
ivory:
Something made from or resembling ivory.
(collective, singular or in plural) The teeth.
(collective, singular or in plural) The keys of a piano.
Coordinate term: ebony
to tickle the ivories
(slang) A white person.
Synonyms: see Thesaurus:white person
(informal) A die (object bearing numbers, thrown in games of chance).
- Alexandre Dumas (translated by William Barrow), The Three Musketeers
  The triumphant Englishman did not give himself the trouble even to shake the dice; and, so sure was he of winning, that he threw the ivory on the table without looking.

Translations

material

Afar: qaag
Afrikaans: ivoor, elpebeen
Akkadian: 𒅗 (ZÚ /šinnu(m)/)
Arabic: عَاج‎ (ar) m (ʿāj)
Egyptian Arabic: عاج‎ m (ʕāg)
Armenian: փղոսկր (hy) (pʿłoskr)
Belarusian: слано́вая косць f (slanóvaja koscʹ)
Bikol Central: gading
Bulgarian: сло́нова кост f (slónova kost)
Burmese: ဆင်စွယ် (my) (hcangcwai)
Catalan: ivori (ca) m, vori (ca) m, marfil (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 象牙 (zh) (xiàngyá)
Classical Nahuatl: tlanomitl, mazātl elefante īcōātlan
Crimean Tatar: fil tişi
Czech: slonovina (cs) f
Danish: elfenben (da) n
Dutch: ivoor (nl) n
Egyptian:

(ꜣbw)
Esperanto: eburo
Estonian: elevandiluu
Faroese: fílabein n
Finnish: norsunluu (fi)
French: ivoire (fr) m
Galician: marfil m
German: Elfenbein (de) n
Greek: φίλντισι (el) n (fílntisi)
Ancient: ἐλέφας m (eléphas)
Gujarati: હાથીદાંત ? (hāthīdā̃t)
Hausa: hauren giwa
Hawaiian: niho ʻelepani
Hebrew: שֶׁנְהָב‎ (he) m (shenhav)
Hindi: हाथीदांत m (hāthīdānt), हाथी दांत m (hāthī dānt), गजदन्त (hi) m (gajdant)
Hungarian: elefántcsont (hu)
Icelandic: fílabein (is) n, fílsbein n
Ido: ivoro (io)
Indonesian: gading (id)
Irish: eabhar m
Italian: avorio (it) m
Japanese: 象牙 (ja) (ぞうげ, zōge)
Kalmyk: занын ясн (zanïn yasn)
Khmer: ទន្ត (km) (tŏən), ភ្លុក (km) (phluk)
Kikuyu: mũguongo class 3
Korean: 상아(象牙) (ko) (sang'a)
Latin: ebur (la) n
Latvian: ziloņkauls m
Lithuanian: dramblio kaulo m
Luxembourgish: Elfebeen n
Macedonian: слонова коска f (slonova koska)
Malay: gading (ms)
Maltese: avorju
Maori: rei
Middle English: elpes bon, ivorie, yvory
Mongolian: зааны яс (zaany jas)
Norman: iviéthe m (Jersey)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: elfenbein n, elfenben n
Nynorsk: elfenbein n, filsbein n (rare)
Old English: elpendbān n
Old French: olifan m
Persian: عاج‎ (fa) ('âj), پیلسته‎ (fa) (piloste)
Polish: kość słoniowa (pl) f
Portuguese: marfim (pt) m
Romanian: fildeș (ro) n, ivoriu (ro) n
Romansch: ivur m
Russian: слоно́вая кость f (slonóvaja kostʹ)
Samoan: nifo elefane
Sardinian:
Campidanese: marfilu ?
Sassarese: aboriu ?
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: сло̀новача f, бје̏локо̄ст f
Roman: slònovača (sh) f, bjȅlokōst (sh) f
Slovak: slonovina f
Slovene: slonovina (sl) f
Somali: caag
Spanish: marfil (es) m
Swahili: pembe za ndovu
Swedish: elfenben (sv) n
Tagalog: garing
Tajik: устухони фил (ustuxoni fil)
Thai: งาช้าง (ngaa cháang)
Tibetan: བལ་སོ (bal so)
Turkish: fildişi (tr)
Ukrainian: слоно́ва кі́стка f (slonóva kístka)
Urdu: ہاتھی دانت‎ (hāthī dānt)
Uzbek: fil suyagi
Vietnamese: ngà voi (vi), ngà (vi)
Volapük: vior (vo)
Walloon: ivwere (wa) m
Waray-Waray: gading
Welsh: dant eliffant
Westrobothnian: effelbein n, efälbein n
Yiddish: העלפֿאַנדביין‎ ? (helfandbeyn)

colour

Bulgarian: сло́нова кост f (slónova kost)
Catalan: ivori (ca), vori (ca), marfil (ca) m
Dutch: ivoorkleur (nl) f
Estonian: elevandiluuvärv
Finnish: norsunluunvalkoinen
French: ivoire (fr) m
Galician: marfil m
German: Elfenbein (de) n, Elfenbeinfarbe f
Hungarian: elefántcsontszín (hu)
Ido: ivoreo, ivorkoloro
Irish: dath an eabhair m
Malay: gading (ms)
Romanian: alb-ivoriu ?
Russian: слоно́вая кость f (slonóvaja kostʹ), цвет слоно́вой ко́сти m (cvet slonóvoj kósti)
Spanish: ebúrneo (es) ?
Swedish: elfenbensfärg c, elfenbensvitt n
Thai: สีงาช้าง

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

Breton: ^{(please verify)} olifant (br) m, ^{(please verify)} ivor (br) m
Indonesian: ^{(please verify)} gading (id)
Interlingua: ^{(please verify)} ebore
Latin: ^{(please verify)} ebur (la)

Adjective

ivory (not comparable)

Made of ivory.
- 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 10, in Mr. Pratt's Patients:
  Men that I knew around Wapatomac didn't wear high, shiny plug hats, nor yeller spring overcoats, nor carry canes with ivory heads as big as a catboat's anchor, as you might say.
Resembling or having the colour of ivory.
- 1938, Interior Decoration To-day (page 132)
  The walls and ceiling of this drawing-room in Montague Square are painted ivory.

Derived terms

ivory-billed woodpecker
ivory black
Ivory Coast
ivory gull
ivory nut
ivory-nut palm
ivory palm
ivory shell
ivory tower
ivory-white
vegetable ivory

Related terms

chryselephantine
eburnation

Translations

made of ivory

Bulgarian: от слонова кост (ot slonova kost)
Czech: slonovinový
Dutch: ivoren (nl)
Esperanto: ebura
Finnish: norsunluinen (fi)
German: elfenbeinern, Elfenbein-
Greek:
Ancient: ἐλεφάντινος (elephántinos)
Ido: ivora (io), ivorala
Irish: eabhair
Italian: eburneo (it), avorio (it)
Latin: eburneus (la)
Malay: gading (ms)
Old English: elpendbǣnen
Portuguese: ebóreo, ebúrneo (pt), de marfim
Romanian: de fildeș, din fildeș
Sardinian:
Campidanese: marfilu
Sassarese: aboriu
Slovak: slonovinový
Spanish: de marfil, ebúrneo (es) m
Swedish: elfenbens-, Elfenbens-

having colour of ivory

Dutch: ivoorkleurig (nl), ivoorkleurige (nl)
Finnish: norsunluunvalkoinen
German: elfenbeinfarben (de), elfenbeinfarbig
Ido: ivorea
Irish: eabhartha
Italian: eburneo (it)
Latin: eburneus (la)
Malay: gading (ms)
Romanian: alb-ivoriu
Sardinian:
Campidanese: marfilu
Sassarese: aboriu
Swedish: elfenbensfärgad

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} ebura
Interlingua: ^{(please verify)} eboree
Volapük: ^{(please verify)} viorik

Middle English

Noun

ivory

Alternative form of yvory