isle

isle — noun

1. a piece of land completely surrounded by water, like a small island; the word is

1.名詞B2
釋義

a piece of land completely surrounded by water, like a small island; the word is often used in poetry or in the official names of specific islands.

例句

For her summer holiday, Layla visited the Isle of Wight with her family.

place name usage: the Isle of Wight

In the old poem, the hero washed up on a lonely isle after the storm.

literary / poetic register

同義詞
  • island

    the common everyday word for any land surrounded by water; much more frequent than 'isle'

  • islet

    refers to a very small island, often in scientific or geographical writing

  • cay

    a low island made of sand or coral, used mainly in Caribbean contexts

文法句型

the Isle of [place name]

a/an [adjective] isle

用法筆記

In everyday conversation, 'island' is the natural choice. 'Isle' is mainly used in place names (Isle of Man, Isle of Wight) and in poetry or literary writing.

常見錯誤

❌The boat reached a small isle in the middle of the lake.
✅The boat reached a small island in the middle of the lake.
💡'Isle' sounds literary or old-fashioned for ordinary descriptions of small islands; use 'island' unless the place name includes 'Isle'.
❌They bought a house on a tropical isle near Thailand.
✅They bought a house on a tropical island near Thailand.
💡In everyday descriptions of real places, 'island' is the standard word.

isle — verb