Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island in a river or a lake island may be called an eyot or ait, and a small island off the coast may be called a holm. A grouping of geographically or geologically related islands is called an archipelago, such as the Philippines.
Low island
This distinction is important to understand, as there are some low islands, such as Makatea, Nauru, Niue and Banaba, which rise several hundred feet above sea level, while a number of "High Islands" (those of volcanic origin) can rise no more than a few feet above sea level, often classified as "rocks". Low islands are the kind of islands which ring the lagoons of atolls.