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See the Forest and the Trees With Sylva
In Latin, sylva means "wood" or "forest," and the related Sylvanus is the name of the Roman god of the woods and fields—a god sometimes identified with the Greek god Pan. These words gave rise to English sylvan in the 16th century. The English word was first used as a noun meaning "a mythological deity of the woods," eventually taking on the broader meaning "one who frequents the woods." The adjective sylvan followed soon after the noun and is now the more common word. Some other offspring of sylva (which can also be spelled silva) include silviculture ("a branch of forestry dealing with the development and care of forests"), sylvatic (a synonym of sylvan that can also mean "occurring in or affecting wild animals"), and the first name Sylvia.
Examples of sylvan in a Sentence
Jay Pilgreen, Kansas City Star, 12 Feb. 2024
In this sylvan vision, wooden skylines will be erected with glued lumber laminates that rival steel and concrete in strength and reliability.
—William Booth, Washington Post, 31 Oct. 2023
Richard Morgan, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 July 2022
So neither Danny nor I are surprised that this prequel opens on the sylvan fields of Valinor where Elven children play.
—Los Angeles Times, 4 Sep. 2022
See all Example Sentences for sylvan 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sylvan.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Sylvan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sylvan. Accessed 2 Jul. 2024.
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