ebony

ebony — noun

1. a tall tree that grows in the tropical parts of Africa and Asia, producing a ver

1.nounB2
Definition

a tall tree that grows in the tropical parts of Africa and Asia, producing a very hard dark-coloured wood that is used to make fine furniture and musical instruments

Example

Ebony trees grow very slowly, which makes their wood especially dense and valuable.

collocation: ebony trees (the tree species)

The villagers planted several ebony trees on the hillside to restore the forest.

Common collocations
  • ebony trees
  • ebony species
  • tropical ebony
  • African ebony
Synonyms
  • diospyros

    the scientific genus name; used in botany rather than everyday speech

Common Mistakes

I bought an ebony for the table.
I bought a piece of ebony for the table.
sense 1 (the tree) is countable, but sense 2 (the wood as material) is uncountable.

2. the very hard, dense dark-coloured material obtained from the ebony tree, tradit

2.nounB2
Definition

the very hard, dense dark-coloured material obtained from the ebony tree, traditionally valued for making expensive furniture, piano keys, musical instruments, and ornamental objects

Example

The carpenter carefully cut a piece of ebony to make a jewelry box.

uncountable: a piece of ebony (material noun)

A piano with ebony keys looks beautiful and feels smooth to the touch.

typical use: piano keys

Common collocations
  • solid ebony
  • carved ebony
  • polished ebony
  • ebony furniture
  • ebony inlay
Synonyms
  • hardwood

    a broader category; ebony is one specific type of hardwood

Usage Note

When referring to the material, this sense is uncountable — you cannot say 'an ebony' to mean a piece of the wood; use 'a piece of ebony' or 'ebony' without an article.

Common Mistakes

I need an ebony to repair the piano.
I need some ebony to repair the piano.
ebony as a material is uncountable, like 'wood' or 'gold'.

3. a very deep, rich black shade that looks like the natural colour of polished ebo

3.nounB1
Definition

a very deep, rich black shade that looks like the natural colour of polished ebony wood

Example

The photograph showed the colour of the actress's hair as a rich ebony.

colour noun used as complement

Dylan painted the front door in a deep ebony that matched the window frames.

Common collocations
  • rich ebony
  • deep ebony
  • shades of ebony
Synonyms
  • jet-black

    more common in everyday descriptions; ebony suggests a glossier, richer black

ebony — adjective

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

While 'black' is the general term for the darkest colour, 'ebony' suggests a deeper, richer black with a glossy or polished quality, often linked to high-quality materials. 'Dark' is much broader and can describe any colour with low lightness — such as dark blue, dark green, or dark brown — not just black. For objects, 'ebony' is preferred when the material itself is being highlighted or implied: a piano has 'ebony keys' (made of the wood), but you would call a plain black T-shirt simply 'black', not 'ebony'. For hair, 'ebony' describes very black, shiny hair, whereas 'dark hair' could include shades of brown. 'Ebony' is less common in everyday conversation and carries a more formal or literary tone than 'black'.

ebony ↗black ↗dark ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • ebony wood
  • ebony tree
  • ebony furniture
  • ebony keys
  • ebony handle

Phrases

  • made of ebony
  • inlaid with ebony
  • polished ebony
  • carved from ebony

Prepositions

  • of ebony
  • in ebony

Etymology

EgyptianGreekLatinFrenchEnglish

The word 'ebony' entered English through Latin 'ebenus' from Greek 'ebeninos', which in turn comes from Egyptian 'hbnj' — a word used for a dark, hard wood that was traded along the Nile thousands of years ago. The tree species that produce ebony wood are native to tropical Africa and Asia.