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Definition of ivory tower noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

ivory tower

noun

/ˌaɪvəri ˈtaʊə(r)/

/ˌaɪvəri ˈtaʊər/

(disapproving)

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a place or situation where you are separated from the problems and practical aspects of normal life and therefore do not have to worry about or understand them
- academics living in ivory towers
Word Originearly 20th cent.: translating French tour d'ivoire, used by the writer Sainte-Beuve.

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