olive branch
UK/ˈɒlɪv bɹɑːntʃ/US/ˈɑlɪv bɹæntʃ/
olive branch noun: a branch of an olive tree offered as an emblem of peace. Also the alternative form of olive-branch.
Noun
olive branch (plural olive branches)
- A branch of an olive tree offered as an emblem of peace.
- I appeal to you to enable our people to establish national independent sovereignty over its own land. / Today I have come bearing an olive branch and a freedom-fighter's gun. Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand. I repeat: do not let the olive branch fall from my hand. / War flares up in...1974 November 13, Yasser Arafat, “Agenda Item 108: Question of Palestine”, in United Nations General Assembly Twenty-ninth Session Official Records: 2282nd Plenary Meeting, A/PV.2282 and Corr.1...
- Any symbol of peace, or a peace offering to an adversary to show goodwill and in the hope of securing peace.
- extend an olive branch
- His [George W. Bush's] remarks came after Britain offered a diplomatic olive branch to Iran earlier in the day to try to secure an early release of the prisoners.2007 April 1, Ned Temko, Mark Townsend, Jason Burke, “Iran snubs UK olive branch: George Bush denounces capture and calls for hostages to be freed”, in The Observer, London, archived from the...
- Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: A branch of an olive tree.
Also used as
olive branch is also the alternative form of olive-branch.
olive branch meaning in Arabic
olive branch in Arabic
- branch of an olive tree as an emblem of peace
- غُصْن الزَيْتُون ḡuṣn az-zaytūn
- any symbol of peace
- غُصْن الزَّيْتُون ḡuṣn az-zaytūn
Examples of olive branch in a sentence
- I appeal to you to enable our people to establish national independent sovereignty over its own land. / Today I have come bearing an olive branch and a freedom-fighter's gun.1974 November 13, Yasser Arafat, “Agenda Item 108: Question of Palestine”, in United Nations General Assembly Twenty-ninth Session Official...
- Amidst warning of the threats posed by illegal immigration to jobs and safety, the president [Donald Trump] seemingly extended an olive branch to his opponents.2017 March 1, Anthony Zurcher, “Trump addresses Congress: A kinder, gentler president”, in BBC News, archived from the original on 05 Jun...
- Beijing has offered some olive branches.2023 February 10, Vivian Wang, “China, Still Trying to Play Down Balloon, Finds It’s Getting Harder to Do”, in The New York Times, →ISSN...
Forms of olive branch
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | olive branches |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | olive branches |
| present participle | olive branching |
| past participle | olive branched |
| past | olive branched |
Origin of olive branch
The olive branch has been regarded as a symbol of peace since Ancient Greek times. For example, in Virgil’s Aeneid (written between 29 and 19 B.C.E.), Aeneas holds an olive branch and declares that it bears the following message: “The Trojans and their Chief / Bring holy peace; and beg the King’s relief.” The symbolism was strengthened by the reference in Genesis 8:11 of the Bible to Noah sending out a dove from the Ark which returns bearing an olive leaf in its beak, thus showing that the Great Flood is receding.
Words formed from olive branch
- Olive Branch route
Questions about olive branch
- What does olive branch mean?
- Olive branch means a branch of an olive tree offered as an emblem of peace.
- What is olive branch in Arabic?
- Olive branch in Arabic is غُصْن الزَيْتُون (ḡuṣn az-zaytūn), غُصْن الزَّيْتُون (ḡuṣn az-zaytūn). See Olive branch meaning in Arabic.
- How do you use olive branch in a sentence?
- I appeal to you to enable our people to establish national independent sovereignty over its own land. / Today I have come bearing an olive branch and a freedom-fighter's gun.
- What part of speech is olive branch?
- Olive branch is a noun.
- How do you pronounce olive branch?
- Olive branch is pronounced /ˈɒlɪv bɹɑːntʃ/ (UK).
- What is the plural of olive branch?
- The plural of olive branch is olive branches.
Words near olive branch in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: olive branch (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-olive branch.ogg.
Cite this entry: “olive branch.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/olive_branch. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.