SINCE 1828
olive branch
nounDefinition of olive branch
1
: a branch of the olive tree especially when used as a symbol of peace
2
: an offer or gesture of conciliation or goodwill
Examples of olive branch in a Sentence
The winner extended an olive branch to his opponent by calling him a great player.
Recent Examples on the Web
The curriculum changes were shelved, and again protesters offered an olive branch by ending the protests, rather than pushing for further guarantees and assurances. — The Economist, "On Hong Kong, China should retreat to advance," 22 Aug. 2019 After Perry sent her an actual olive branch, Swift reveals how the two met in private to mend their friendship. — Marianne Garvey, CNN, "Taylor Swift opens up about those rifts with Kim Kardashian and Katy Perry," 8 Aug. 2019 When Collins moved the olive branch from beak to talons, the image was locked. — Jamie Turner, cleveland.com, "11 things you might not know about Apollo 11 and the Space Race: Apollo 11 at 50," 17 July 2019 The traditional presidential seal contains the image of an eagle, which holds arrows representing war in one talon and olive branches representing peace in the other. — Sarah Mervosh, BostonGlobe.com, "How Trump ended up onstage with a fake presidential seal," 25 July 2019 It was immediately accepted, and soon an olive branch and arrows (representing peace and war, respectively) were included in the eagle's talons. — Paul A. Smith, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Smith: Our national symbol is a soaring conservation success story," 3 July 2019 Instead of arrows and olives branches clutched in their talons, a closer look reveals two eagles holding a set of golf clubs on one side and a pile of cash on another. — Christopher Brito, CBS News, "Trump stands in front of fake U.S. presidential seal that resembles Russian symbol," 25 July 2019 What may have seemed like an olive branch to allow easier access to driving and identification now could be an invitation for investigation, arrest, or deportation. — Sidney Fussell, The Atlantic, "ICE and the Ever-Widening Surveillance Dragnet," 10 July 2019 Given those constraints, perhaps the only way the government could extend an olive branch might be by shifting its stance on the police. — Ilaria Maria Sala, Quartz, "Hong Kong’s last major riots reshaped the city into the one we know today," 9 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'olive branch.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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