ivory tower
nounDefinition of ivory tower
1
: an impractical often escapist attitude marked by aloof lack of concern with or interest in practical matters or urgent problems
2
: a secluded place that affords the means of treating practical issues with an impractical often escapist attitude
especially
: a place of learning
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Other Words from ivory tower
ivory-tower
adjective
ivory-towerish
\ ˈīv-rē-ˈtau̇-(ə-)rish 
, ˈī-və-rē- \
adjective
, ˈī-və-rē- \
adjective
Examples of ivory tower in a Sentence
The book was written by some college professor who's spent her entire professional life in an ivory tower.
Recent Examples on the Web
In their ivory towers, the NFL owners have to be aware that the only sensible change is cutting the preseason in half (two games) and having more joint practices to serve as an evaluation tool for their players. — Ryan O'halloran, The Denver Post, "Broncos Mailbag: Should calling for fair catches be Denver’s punt-return strategy?," 27 Aug. 2019 Some ivory tower experts doubted that call center volunteers, few of whom were psychiatrists or psychologists, could defuse a crisis. — Greg Miller, Science | AAAS, "Three suicide prevention strategies show real promise. How can they reach more people?," 22 Aug. 2019 In his satirical images, Orozco targeted US public education and conformity, academe’s ivory tower, a corrupting military, and the mortal sacrifices of nationalistic war. — Steve Burkholder, BostonGlobe.com, "Two fine arts sites beckon in New Hampshire," 25 July 2019 But with or without a draft, ROTC belongs on college campuses, lest our universities become removed from reality in a way that exacerbates the negatives of the ivory tower mystique. — Jeff Rice, Twin Cities, "Jeff Rice: I damaged the ROTC offices at Northwestern University. Here’s how — and why — I atone," 24 June 2019 Nor are there, precisely, always: people to meet, feelings to feel, or new worlds to visit — unless this world is the inner ivory tower of one’s own conscience, which DeWitt believes is worth our determined scrutiny and endless respect. — Brittany Allen, Longreads, "Getting Tricked by Helen DeWitt," 9 July 2018 Most of science’s #MeToo stories have been confined to campus, the ivory tower, and raucous conferences at bland hotels. — Sarah Scoles, Outside Online, "The Harassment Problem in Scientific Dream Jobs," 21 May 2018 Not content to spend those years handing down theories on the Soviet Union from the ivory tower, Pipes was an active participant—some would say combatant—in the debates of those years. — The Editorial Board, WSJ, "Richard Pipes," 17 May 2018 Technology like automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection plus adaptive cruise control have left the ivory towers of Mercedes-Benz and Volvo to hardworking offerings. — Tom Voelk, New York Times, "Cars That Will Get Your Grad Down the Road of Life," 19 Apr. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ivory tower.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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