Ellis

Meanings

proper nounEllis (countable and uncountable, plural Ellises)

plural Ellises · alternative Ellice

countableuncountableAn English surname originating as a patronymic from Elis, the Middle English form of Elijah.
Trump campaign adviser Jenna Ellis intentionally misgendered Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine, a transgender woman, on Twitter early Monday morning.
2020, Tim Fitzsimons, “Trump campaign adviser 'won't apologize' for misgendering trans health official”, in NBC News
countableuncountableA surname from Welsh [in turn originating as a patronymic] and A male given name from Welsh, an anglicization of Elisedd.
countableuncountableA unisex given name transferred from the surname.
Elisha Brabin, 36, and her children, Leo, 16, Ellis, 8, and Prudence, 7, died after a blaze "spread rapidly" inside a house on Stone Square in Bootle, Merseyside, in the early hours of Tuesday.
2026 September 23, Rachael Lazaro, Rachel Braund, “Family tribute to 'devoted' mum and 'precious' children who died in fire”, in BBC News, archived from the original on 24 Sep 2026, retrieved 24 Sep 2026
A locale in the United States:
1. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Stockton Township, Greene County, Indiana; named for politician William Ellis Niblack.
2. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Scott Township, Steuben County, Indiana.
3. countableuncountableA city in Ellis County, Kansas; named for American Civil War veteran George Ellis.
4. countableuncountableA township in Cheboygan County, Michigan.
5. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Byron Township, Cass County, Minnesota.
6. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Vernon County, Missouri.
7. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Gage County, Nebraska; named for banker John R. Ellis.
8. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Muskingum County, Ohio; named for a local family.
9. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Minnehaha County, South Dakota; probably named for railroad worker A. B. Ellis.
10. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in the town of Sharon, Portage County, Wisconsin; named for politician Albert G. Ellis.

Origin

* As an English surname, from the Middle English personal name Elis, an Old French form of Elias. Compare Elijah, Lias, Ely. Also sometimes from the Elice, a pet form of Elizabeth. * As a Welsh surname, shortened from the personal name Elisse, Elisedd, from the archaic elus (“benevolent, kind”).

Full word history & related roots →