ebony /ˈebənē, ˈɛbəni 
/ ▸ noun 1 heavy blackish or very dark brown timber from a mainly tropical tree. ▪ a very dark brown or black color: his smile flashed against the ebony of his skin
[as modifier] his ebony hair.
2 a tree of tropical and warm-temperate regions which produces ebony. Genera
Diospyros and
Euclea, family
Ebenaceae: numerous species, in particular
D. ebenum.▪ used in names of trees that produce timber similar to ebony, e.g. Jamaican ebony or American ebony. – ORIGIN late Middle English : from earlier ebon (via Old French and Latin from Greek ebenos ‘ebony tree’), perhaps on the pattern of ivory.
EnglishOxford New American Dictionary
