isle

1 of 2

noun

ˈī(-ə)l 

plural isles

: island

Pacific isles

Steering with due course toward the isle of Rhodes …

—William Shakespeare

especially : a small island : islet

I once lived on the … island of Antiparos, a tiny isle behind Paros.

—Emily Prager

Islay is a small Hebridean isle, some 25 miles in length, with a population of less than 4,000, yet it boasts eight of the oldest and most famous distilleries in Scotland.

—Henry Shukman

isle

2 of 2

verb

isled; isling

transitive verb

1

: to make an isle of

2

: to place on or as if on an isle

Synonyms of isle

Noun

• island

Examples of isle in a Sentence

Noun

the Australian seas are rife with uninhabited isles

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

On a remote Scottish isle, siblings Isla and Sandy hunt birds and talk to mythical beings while fighting off outsiders. —Peter Debruge, Variety, 10 Dec. 2025

The Baccarat Hotel & Residences, a centuries-old brand long associated with royal heritage and exquisite artistry, is located on five interconnected isles in the South Malé Atoll. —Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 8 Dec. 2025

The solid Eucalyptus color is great for styling with festive designs like red plaid or fair isle patterns. —Alicia Geigel, Southern Living, 1 Dec. 2025

Hiking that tax — frozen at 22 cents per gallon since 1993 — is widely politically unpopular on both sides of the isle. —Michael F. Gorman, Fortune, 27 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French ile, isle, from Latin insula

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1590, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for isle

• aisle
• bile
• chyle
• file
• guile
• heil
• kyle
• mile
• pile
• rile
• smile
• stile

Kids Definition

isle

noun

ˈī(ə)l

: island sense 1

especially : islet

Etymology

Noun

from early French isle "isle, island," from Latin insula "island" — related to insulate, isolate, peninsula