Ebony \Eb"on*y\, n.; pl. Ebonies. [F. ['e]b[`e]ne, L. ebenus, fr. Gr. ?; prob. of Semitic origin; cf. Heb. hobn[=i]m, pl. Cf. Ebon.]

A hard, heavy, and durable wood, which admits of a fine polish or gloss. The usual color is black, but it also occurs red or green.

Note: The finest black ebony is the heartwood of Diospyros reticulata, of the Mauritius. Other species of the same genus (D. Ebenum, Melanoxylon, etc.), furnish the ebony of the East Indies and Ceylon. The West Indian green ebony is from a leguminous tree (Brya Ebenus), and from the Exc[ae]caria glandulosa.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)