ivory tower

noun

1

: an impractical often escapist attitude marked by aloof lack of concern with or interest in practical matters or urgent problems

2

: a secluded place that affords the means of treating practical issues with an impractical often escapist attitude

especially : a place of learning

ivory-tower

ˈī-v(ə-)rē-ˈtau̇(-ə)r 

adjective

ivory-towerish

ˈī-v(ə-)rē-ˈtau̇-(ə-)rish 

adjective

Examples of ivory tower in a Sentence

The book was written by some college professor who's spent her entire professional life in an ivory tower.

Recent Examples on the Web

Anderson’s films have broken Pynchon out of ivory tower containment, but those walls were already crumbling. —Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2025

So why has Priestly chosen to descend from her ivory tower at Elias Clarke Publications’s Manhattan HQ and rejoin fashion’s front line? —Luke Leitch, Vogue, 27 Sep. 2025

No diva designer-in-the-ivory tower behavior here. —Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 26 Sep. 2025

And while some may say academics exist in an ivory tower, the experience of welcoming generations of young people into our institutions each year provides a constant reminder of what is gained by educating young adults to ask why and why not rather than to rely on rote certainty. —Brendan Harley, Twin Cities, 11 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

translation of French tour d'ivoire

First Known Use

1894, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ivory tower

• airpower
• brainpower
• devour
• empower
• firepower
• horsepower
• manpower
• mayflower
• safflower
• sunflower
• wallflower
• watchtower