Meanings
- USeducationAn association of eight universities in the USA, known for high quality.First known use 1935
Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton, and Yale form the Ivy League.
1 more example
Almost as an afterthought, we’re given an origin story for Barney’s alcoholism: he was once a sober, studious, Ivy League-bound high school scholar before Homer forced a beer on him that transformed him into a drooling, slurring, out of control rampaging id.
2012 June 3, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Mr. Plow” (season 4, episode 9; originally aired 11/19/1992)”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name)
plural Ivy Leagues
- A haircut similar to a crew cut but left long enough on top that the hair can be styled with a side part.
Synonyms: Harvard clip, Princeton cut
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA haircut similar to a crew cut but left long enough on top that the hair can be styled with a side part.
Origin
From earlier Ivy colleges (1933), as Ivy League first used by AP sports editor Alan J. Gould (1935). The title became official after the formation of the athletic conference in 1954. From the tradition of Ivy Day at many older colleges and universities, where ivy is planted to honor academic excellence.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 長春藤聯盟 /长春藤联盟, 常青藤聯盟 /常青藤联盟
- 長春藤聯盟 /长春藤联盟 (Chángchūnténg Liánméng)association
- 常青藤聯盟 /常青藤联盟 (Chángqīngténg Liánméng)association
Dutch Ivy League
- Ivy Leagueassociation
Finnish Ivy League, murattiliiga
- Ivy Leagueassociation
- murattiliigaassociation
Spanish Liga de Yedra
- Liga de Yedraassociation
Cite this entry
Ivy League. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ivy%20League
“Ivy League.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ivy%20League. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Ivy League,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ivy%20League.
Source: Ivy League on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.