olive family: Meaning and Definition of

ol'ive fam"ily

Pronunciation: [key]
  1. the plant family Oleaceae, characterized by trees and shrubs having opposite, simple or pinnately compound leaves, usually small and sometimes showy flowers, and fruit in the form of a berry, capsule, or winged seed, and including the ash, forsythia, lilac, olive, and privet.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.