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Definition of ellen

ellen

/ˈɛl.ən/
el · len
Plural:ellens
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ellen Lexical Profile

• noun

1

A female given name, originally an English variant of Helen.

Example

"They decided to name their daughter Ellen after her maternal grandmother."

2

British An archaic or dialectal name for the European elder (Sambucus nigra), a deciduous shrub or small tree of the family Adoxaceae native to Europe, bearing flat-topped clusters of creamy-white flowers and dark purple-black berries.

Example

"The old country lane was bordered by tangled hedgerows of hawthorn and wild ellen."

Synonyms
View all synonyms for ellen

• Rhymes for ellen

• Nearby Words

elk
elk falls
ella
ellen
ellenborough
ellenborough falls
ellington

Word Origin & Etymology

As a dialectal term for the elder tree, it derives from Middle English elren or ellern, from Old English ellen. As a female given name, it developed as a medieval English variant of Helen, ultimately from the Ancient Greek Helene.

Usage Trend

Historical frequency of usage in published text.

180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer

Cite this Entry

Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Ellen. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/ellen
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