liana

From French liane, influenced by lien (“link, bond”). The word comes from the western dialects of West Indian French.

• Rhymes: -ɑːnə

liana (plural lianas)

1. A climbing woody vine, usually tropical.
   • 1839, Charles Darwin, The Voyage of the Beagle, Chapter 2,

     Many of the older trees presented a very curious appearance from the tresses of a liana hanging from their boughs, and resembling bundles of hay.

   • 1884, Achilles Daunt, Frank Redcliffe: A story of travel and adventure in the forests of Venezuela (A Book for Boys), London: T. Nelson & Sons, Chapter 5, p. 99,

     Flowering lianas hung in long streaming lines from the outstretched boughs and dipped their pendulous bouquets in the water of the igarape, which reflected the cloudless blue of the sky.

   • 1943, Allied Geographical Section, Southwest Pacific Area, Getting About in New Guinea, 4 April, 1943, p. 6,

     Allow friendly natives to walk in front of you on the track. They have sharp eyes for pitfalls, snakes, hornets, and stinging plants. They will cut the lianas and thorny trailers. They like to do it.

   • 1961, V. S. Naipaul, A House for Mr Biswas, Vintage International, 2001, Part Two, Chapter 3,

     They left the drive and stood among the wild tannia under the saman tree. Mrs Tulsi held a liana and offered it to Mr Biswas. While he felt it, she held a thinner liana and pulled it down. ‘As strong as rope,’ she said. ‘The children could skip with this.’

• climber
• rattan
• scrambler
• twiner
• vine

• Al Ain, Alani, Alina, IANAL, Lanai, lanai

• IPA^(key): /liˈana/, /ˈljana/

liana f (plural liane)

1. liana (vine)
2. plot (complicated)

• alani
• anali
• inala

• IPA^(key): /ˈlʲa.na/

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liana f

1. liana

From French liane, of unknown ultimate origin.

• IPA^(key): /ˈljana/

liana f (plural lianas)

1. liana

• bejuco
• guaco

• “liana” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.

-liana (infinitive kuliana)

1. Reciprocal form of -lia