tasteful

tasteful (comparative more tasteful, superlative most tasteful)

more tasteful (comparative)
most tasteful (superlative)

Her home was decorated with tasteful, classical furnishings.

Having or exhibiting good taste; aesthetically pleasing or conforming to expectations or ideals of what is appropriate.


funky

en-adj

funky (comparative funkier or more funky, superlative funkiest or most funky)

funkier (comparative)
more funky (comparative)
funkiest (superlative)
most funky (superlative)

They could scarcely bear their knowledge, nor could they have borne the sight of Rufus, but they knew why he was in the streets tonight, why he rode subways all night long, why his stomach growled, why his hair was nappy, his armpits funky, his pants and shoes too thin, and why he did not dare to stop and take a leak.

1962, James Baldwin, Another Country, New York, N. Y.: The Dial Press, published 1963 January, page 4:

JAMES CARTER: You smell a little funky; I think you stepped in some rat shit.

2001, Jeff Nathanson, Rush Hour 2, New Line Cinema:

My husband thinks I'm bathing them more, but I'm not, they just lost that funky smell.

2017, Bruce Fife, Coconut Therapy for Pets, page 47:


burgundy

burgundy (comparative more burgundy, superlative most burgundy)

more burgundy (comparative)
most burgundy (superlative)

1881, from attributive use of Burgundy (“wine from Burgundy”) from Burgundy wine, from Burgundy (“region of France”) + wine.

She and her beige-chemised assistant entered the salonlike fourth-floor showroom and were ushered into a smaller private room with burgundy carpeting that matched Rubylee's J. Tiktiner print dress.

1981, “Texas Monthly”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name), volume 9, number 1, page 96:

Of a deep purple red color like that of Burgundy wine.


virid

virid (comparative more virid, superlative most virid)

more virid (comparative)
most virid (superlative)

From Middle English viride (“verdigris”, adjective, noun) [and other forms] + English -id (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives and nouns). Viride is borrowed from Latin viridis (“green; (figuratively) fresh; lively; young, youthful”), from vireō (“to be green or verdant; to sprout new green growth; to flourish; to be lively or vigorous”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weys- (“to procreate; to produce; to increase; to raise”). Doublet of verdant and vert.

der

Her tombe vvas not of viride Spartane greet, / Nor yet by cunning hand of Scopas vvrought, / But built of poliſht ſtone, and thereon laid / The liuely ſhape and purtrait of the maid.

1600, [Torquato Tasso], “The Twelfth Booke of Godfrey of Bulloigne”, in Edward Fairefax [i.e., Edward Fairfax], transl., Godfrey of Bulloigne, or The Recouerie of Ierusalem. […], London: […] Ar[nold] Hatfield, for I[saac] Iaggard and M[atthew] Lownes, →OCLC, stanza 94, page 231:

The palace here, and there a virid mound, / Confine a flow'ry ſpot of graſſy ground.

1758, [James Macpherson], The Highlander: […], Edinburgh: […] Wal[ter] Ruddiman jun. and Company, →OCLC, canto IV, page 52:

Virid fields would heave brownly under their ploughs; they would find that with practice it was almost as easy to chuckle as it was to cringe.

1921 October, James Branch Cabell, “The Story of the Satraps”, in Chivalry: Dizain des Reines, revised edition, New York, N.Y.: Robert M[edill] McBride & Company, page 170:

His protuberant eyeballs were veined with red like certain kinds of rare marble. He urged me to meditate upon the virid line of the whirling universe.

1977, Angela Carter, chapter 2, in The Passion of New Eve, London: Virago Press, published 1992, →ISBN, page 13:

When the liver has been struck by wind, the victim desires only to squat down and is unable even to lower his head. If the skin around the eyes and on the forehead has taken on a slightly virid hue, the lips have turned virid, and the face yellow, treatment is still possible. […] If, however, the color is a deeply virid or even black and if the face is sometimes yellow and sometimes white, the liver has already suffered irreparable harm.

1985, Paul U[lrich] Unschuld, “[Appendix: Primary Texts in Translation] Chu-ping yüan hou lun”, in Medicine in China: A History of Ideas (Comparative Studies of Health Systems and Medical Care), Berkeley, Los Angeles, Calif., London: University of California Press, →ISBN, section 3.1 (Symptomatology of [the Illness] “Hit-by-Wind”), page 297:


topaz

en-noun

topaz (usually uncountable, plural topazes)

→ Irish: tópás

→ Welsh: topas

From Old French topace (compare French topaze), from Ancient Greek τόπαζος (tópazos).

Elgin. Topaz a Saltier and Chief Ruby, on a Canton Pearl a Lyon Rampant Saphyr, which last is their paternal Coat; and the Field Topaz, and Saltier, and Chief Ruby, was the Arms of King Robert the Bruce, they altering the Field from Pearl (as he bore it) to Topaz. / Eglington. Quarterly, 1st and 4th, Saphyr three Flower-de-Liss Topaz, for Montgomery; 2d and 3d, Ruby three Anulets Topaz', ston'd Saphyr, for the Title of Eglington; […]

1720, Francis Nichols, Rudiments of Honour, page 296:

The Field is Ruby, on a Bend Topaz, three Martlets Diamond. […] 4. Pearl, on a Bend Diamond, nine Annulets conjoined in three Links Topaz.

1726, John Guillim, The Banner Display'd; Or, an Abridgment of Guillim, page 504:

(1) Pearl, a Cross, Ruby, with the Effigies of our Saviour thereon, Topaz, born in Memory of one of the Family's fighting against the Turks. (2) Topaz, a Chief Indented, Saphire. (3) Ruby, three covered Cups, Topaz […]

1754, John Lodge, The Peerage of Ireland; Or, a Genealogical History of the ..., page 71:

(heraldry) Or (gold or yellow), in blazoning by precious stones.

A ruby-topaz hummingbird, Chrysolampis mosquitus, the male of which has bright ruby feathers on the head and topaz on the throat


cerulean

en-adj

cerulean (comparative more cerulean, superlative most cerulean)

more cerulean (comparative)
most cerulean (superlative)

From Latin caeruleus (“blue”) + -an, from caelum (“sky, heaven”) + -uleus (diminutive suffix).

affix

As far to the west as Monica could see, her world was a sea of fog, […]. Above it arched a cerulean sky; as the sun climbed to the zenith, […], the fog gradually took on a bluish tinge.

1920, Peter B. Kyne, chapter II, in The Understanding Heart:

Oh Ramona, if there was only some kind of future / And these cerulean skies / Something in our skies, something in our skies

1995, “The Hearts Filthy Lesson”, in 1. Outside, performed by David Bowie:

But what you don't know is that that sweater is not just blue, it's not turquoise, it's not lapis, it's actually cerulean. And you're also blithely unaware of the fact that in 2002, Oscar de la Renta did a collection of cerulean gowns. And then I think it was Yves Saint Laurent, wasn't it, who showed cerulean military jackets?

2006, Aline Brosh McKenna, Lauren Weisberger, The Devil Wears Prada, spoken by Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep):


celadon

en-noun

celadon (usually uncountable, plural celadons)

Washington D.C. (canonical)
celadons (plural)

Borrowed from the French céladon from the character named Céladon, who wore pale green ribbons, in the novel L'Astrée by Honoré d'Urfé, from Latin Celadon, a warrior's name in Ovid's Metamorphoses.

celadon:

A pale green colour, possibly tinted with gray.

from the Ming Dynasty. Smithsonian Institution


celadon

en-adj

celadon (comparative more celadon, superlative most celadon)

more celadon (comparative)
most celadon (superlative)

[H]e stroked a soft blue cat with celadon eyes which had appeared from nowhere and now made itself comfortable in his lap […].

1941, Vladimir Nabokov, The Real Life of Sebastian Knight, Penguin 1971 edition, page 40:

Of a pale green colour tinted with gray.


claret

en-verb

claret (third-person singular simple present clarets, present participle clareting, simple past and past participle clareted)

clarets (present singular third-person)
clareting (participle present)
clareted (participle past)
clareted (past)

From Middle English claret, from Middle French claret, from Medieval Latin clārātum vīnum, from clārus.
Compare tent (“Spanish red wine”), also from color

We clareted and champagned till two—then supped, and finished with a kind of regency punch composed of madeira, brandy, and green tea, no real water being admitted therein. There was a night for you!

By night, again, we miss the bright cafe, the brilliantly illuminated offices, and the fringe of guests smoking and clareting […]

1869, Andrew Wynter, Subtle Brains and Lissom Fingers:

(intransitive, archaic) To drink claret.


gamboge

en-noun

gamboge (countable and uncountable, plural gamboges)

From New Latin gambogium, cambogium (“resin from trees used to make yellow dye”), from New Latin Gambogia, Cambogia (“Cambodia”). The Latin word was first attested in English as a colour in 1634. Doublet of Cambodia and Kampuchea.

Clusiaceæ, or Guttiferæ, a natural order of trees or shrubs belonging to the Dicotyledons (division Thalamifloræ), natives of the humid tropics of S. America. [...] Most of the plants have acrid properties, and yield a yellow resin. Among the chief and common plants of the order are Gambooge (q.v.), Mangosteen fruit (Garcinia Mangostana), [...]

1877, “Clusiaceæ, or Guttiferæ”, in John M[erry] Ross, editor, The Globe Encyclopædia of Universal Information, volume II, Boston, Mass.: Estes & Lauriat, […], →OCLC, page 178, column 2:

One of several species of trees of the genus Garcinia found in South and Southeastern Asia, especially Garcinia xanthochymus.


kelly green

American coinage, in reference to the Irish surname Kelly and the association of Ireland with the color green.

kelly green:

They were on their way to a clambake, a Friday night with friends at the marina. Wearing a kelly green tennis dress with white espadrilles, she was carrying a sheet cake resembling a flag, blueberries and strawberries as the stars and stripes arranged across a layer of whipped cream.

2022, Ling Ma, “Tomorrow”, in Bliss Montage, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, →ISBN:


hunter green

hunter green (usually uncountable, plural hunter greens)

hunter green:

It is not, thank God, hunter green, the green that for a decade now has permeated every product line from polo shirts to potato peeler handles

2000, Rob Levandoski, Serendipity green, page 115:


sky blue

en-adj

sky blue (comparative more sky blue, superlative most sky blue)

more sky blue (comparative)
most sky blue (superlative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-sky blue.wav

“Hi! Kostandi!” called out an old sailor in a sky-blue cloak. “How are things with you?”

1952, Nikos Kazantzakis, chapter 1, in Carl Wildman, transl., Zorba the Greek, New York, N.Y.: Simon & Schuster, translation of Βίος και πολιτεία του Αλέξη Ζορμπά [Víos kai politeía tou Aléxi Zormpá], →ISBN, page 3:

Of a vibrant light blue colour, like that of the sky on a fine day.


royal blue

royal blue (comparative more royal blue, superlative most royal blue)

more royal blue (comparative)
most royal blue (superlative)


slate blue

en-noun

slate blue (countable and uncountable, plural slate blues)

slate blue:

liuskeenharmaa

dark bluish-grey colour — see also slate, slate gray, blue-gray


eggshell

From Middle English eggeshell, ege schelle, egg-shel, egg shelle (also as Middle English eye schell, ey-schel, ey-schelle), partially continuing Old English ǣġsċill, ǣġsċyll (“eggshell”), equivalent to egg + shell. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Oaierskil (“eggshell”), Dutch eierschaal (“eggshell”), German Eierschale (“eggshell”), Danish æggeskal (“eggshell”), Swedish äggskal (“eggshell”).

cog

eggshell:

A pale off-white colour, like that of the eggshell.


forest green

forest green:

A dark green colour, like that of forest foliage.


forest green

Of a dark green colour, like that of forest foliage.


olive drab

en-noun

olive drab (countable and uncountable, plural olive drabs)

BS 381C olive drab:

FS 595 olive drab:

RAL 6022 olive drab:

X11 olive drab:

A greyish green colour, like that of a ripe green olive; almost invariably with a matte finish.

Cloth of an olive drab colour, used often for military uniforms.


olive drab

Of a greyish green colour, like that of a ripe green olive.


peacock blue

peacock blue (countable and uncountable, plural peacock blues)

peacock blue:

A brilliant, dark blue-green colour, like the plumage of a peacock.


peacock blue

Jo read the following words, inscribed in peacock blue ink, in a near cursive hand.

1980 April 19, Andrea Loewenstein, “Random Lust”, in Gay Community News, page 10:


reseda

From French réséda, from Latin resēda, said by Pliny the Elder (23–79 C.E.) to be from resēdāre (“to soothe”), from re- (“again”) + sēdāre (“to assuage, calm”)), an allusion to the healing properties of the plant.

About the middle of this month, if the ſeaſon proves favourable, you may plant out your hardy annuals, ſuch as Marvel of Peru, Sweet Sultan, China After or Starwort, Sweet Reſeda called Mignonette d'Egypt, French and African Marigolds, Female Balſamine, Capſicum, Brown Jolly, and ſeveral other ſorts, which, if artfully diſpoſed, will afford an agreeable pleaſure, after the beauty of ſpring is paſt; […]

1757, Philip Miller, “May”, in The Gardeners Kalendar; Directing what Works are Necessary to be Done Every Month in the Kitchen, Fruit, and Pleasure-Gardens, as also in the Conservatory and Nursery. With Accounts I. Of the Particular Seasons for the Propagation of All Sorts of Esculent Plants and Fruits, with the Seasons wherein Each Sort is Proper for the Table. II. Of All Sorts of Trees, Plants, and Flowers, with the Time of Their Flowering in Each Month, 11th edition, London: Printed by Charles Rivington, for John Rivington, at the Bible and Crown, in St. Paul's Church-Yard; and James Rivington and James Fletcher, at the Oxford-Theatre, in Pater-noster Row, →OCLC, page 146:

Reseda or mignonette is grown in the Grasse region [of France]. The tendency for green notes in recent years has given fresh interest to the reseda note. Absolute oil of reseda has an odour recalling that of violet leaves, but with a rather fine 'powdery' background and a suggestion of rose and a little basil.

[2003], H. Panda, “Raw Materials: Products of Natural Origin”, in The Complete Technology Book on Herbal Perfumes & Cosmetics, New Delhi: Ajay Kr. Gupta, National Institute of Industrial Research, →ISBN, page 92:

Reseda odorata
Reseda odorata#Translingual

(botany, horticulture, specifically) Mignonette (Reseda odorata).


apple-green

apple-green (countable and uncountable, plural apple-greens)

apple-green:

bright apple-green:

A bright green colour with a light tint of yellow, like that of a Granny Smith apple.


Alice blue

From the name of Alice Roosevelt Longworth (daughter of Theodore Roosevelt), who favoured the colour and made it fashionable in the US.


antique brass

A brownish yellow colour, like that of brass, but darker.


antique brass

Of a brownish yellow colour, like that of brass, but darker.


battleship grey

battleship grey (countable and uncountable, plural battleship greys)

battleship grey:

A medium grey color tinged with blue, like that of a battleship.


battleship grey

Of a medium grey color tinged with blue, like that of a battleship.


blue green

blue green (countable and uncountable, plural blue greens)

* blue + green
* (politics): from blue representing conservatism and green representing environmentalism

blue green:

Blue-greens were the principal primary producers throughout the Proterozoic eon from 2.5 billion to 543 million years ago.

2012, Caspar Henderson, The Book of Barely Imagined Beings, page 287:


blue green

Alternative form of blue-green
Of a bluish green colour.

(politics) Synonym of ecocapitalist; Pertaining to ecocapitalism


blue violet

blue violet (countable and uncountable, plural blue violets)

blue violet:


brick red

Of a warm brownish-red colour similar to that of red clay bricks.


bronze yellow

bronze yellow:

A yellowish brown colour, like that of bronze.


bronze yellow

en-adj

bronze yellow (comparative more bronze yellow, superlative most bronze yellow)

more bronze yellow (comparative)
most bronze yellow (superlative)

Of a yellowish brown colour, like that of bronze.


buckskin

en-noun

buckskin (countable and uncountable, plural buckskins)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-buckskin.wav

From Middle English bukskyn; equivalent to buck + skin.

I have alluded to his buckskins.

1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, chapter 3, in Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC:

buckskin:

A soft strong leather, usually yellowish or grayish in color, made of deerskin.

abaní

a soft strong leather, usually yellowish or grayish in color, made of deerskin

Cornwallis fought as lang's he dought, / An' did the buckskins claw, man.

1784, Robert Burns, Ballad on the American War:

A person clothed in buckskin, particularly an American soldier of the Revolutionary war.

A horse with a light yellowish-brown coat.


burlywood

burlywood:

A brown sandy colour, of RGB hexadecimal value #DEB887.


burnt sienna

We drink the last of the spring water in our canteens and, still thirsty, look to the river, that sombre flow the color of burnt sienna, raw umber, muy colorado, too thin to plow–as the Mormons say–and too thick to drink.

1968, Edward Abbey, “Down the River”, in Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness, McGraw-Hill; republished New York: Touchstone, 1968, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 160:

burnt sienna:

dark reddish brown colour, like that of roasted sienna.


burnt sienna

Of a dark reddish brown colour, like that of roasted sienna.


butterscotch

butterscotch (usually uncountable, plural butterscotches)

/ˈbʌtɚˌskɑt͡ʃ/

From butter + scotch, with the second element deriving (not from scotch whiskey or Scotland, but) from Middle English scocchen (“to score, nick, cut”), in reference to how the candy is boiled and hardened and then usually scored to make breaking it apart easier. The word is usually said to have originally been a trademark of Parkinson's, who is claimed to have invented it.

der

A hard candy made from butter, brown sugar, syrup and vanilla.

A sauce or syrup made of similar ingredients.

奶油糖漿 /奶油糖浆

butterscotch:

A light brown colour, like that of butterscotch candy.


butterscotch

/ˈbʌtɚˌskɑt͡ʃ/

Of a light brown colour, like that of butterscotch candy.


Cambridge blue

en-noun

Cambridge blue (countable and uncountable, plural Cambridge blues)

Perhaps related to the colour of a body of water: Cambridge has a famous boating club, and at one time used light blue as a school colour. "The greening of Cambridge blue is often attributed to Alf Twinn, university boatman between 1934 and 1984, who, either because he wanted to distinguish the rowing colours from the rugby union team's, or because his eyesight was deteriorating, began adding subtle amounts of yellow to the blue paint used for oar blades."

Cambridge blue:

A medium spring green colour used by sports teams from the University of Cambridge.


carroty

en-adj

carroty (comparative more carroty, superlative most carroty)

more carroty (comparative)
most carroty (superlative)

The pupil, thus affectionately invoked, at length came stumbling into the room; a queer, shambling, ill-made urchin, who, by his stunted growth, seemed about twelve or thirteen years old, though he was probably, in reality, a year or two older, with a carroty pate in huge disorder, a freckled, sunburnt visage, with a snub nose, a long chin, and two peery grey eyes […]

1821 January 8, [Walter Scott], Kenilworth; a Romance. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; and John Ballantyne, […]; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC:

"All the north is seething," said Gerard. "We must contrive to agitate the metropolis," said Maclast, a shrewd carroty-haired paper-stainer.

1845, B[enjamin] Disraeli, chapter VIII, in Sybil; or The Two Nations. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, book V, page 101:

Resembling carrots in colour, taste, shape etc.

marchewkowy

resembling carrots in colour, taste, etc.


cinereous

cinereous (comparative more cinereous, superlative most cinereous)

more cinereous (comparative)
most cinereous (superlative)

Latin cinereus, from cinis, cineris (“ashes”).


citrine

en-noun

citrine (countable and uncountable, plural citrines)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-citrine.wav

From Middle English citrine, partly from Middle French citrine and partly from Latin citrīnus.

citrine:

[…] the urine becometh citrine, or of a deep yellowe color […]

1598, Francis Thynne, Animadversions […] :

dorrẹ̅, dōrī adj. & n. […] Golden or reddish-yellow […] (a. 1398) *Trev. Barth. 59b/a: ʒelouʒ colour [of urine] […] tokeneþ febleness of hete […] dorrey & citrine & liʒt red tokeneþ mene.

c. 1398, quoted in Hans Kurath & Sherman M. Kuhn, eds., Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan Press, ISBN 978-0-472-01044-8, 1962, page 1242

A goldish-yellow colour, like that of a lemon.


citrine

The coin […] bore what I at first thought was a woman's face—a woman crowned, neither young nor old, but silent and perfect in the citrine metal.

1980, Gene Wolfe, chapter III, in The Shadow of the Torturer (The Book of the New Sun; 1), New York: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 31:


clair de lune

Borrowed from French clair de lune (“moonlight”).

clair de lune:


cool gray

cool gray:


cornsilk

cornsilk:

A very light yellow colour, like that of corn silk.

Alternative form of corn silk (the thready fibres of stigmata of corn (maize))


cornsilk

Of a very light yellow colour, like that of corn silk.


cupreous

en-adj

cupreous (comparative more cupreous, superlative most cupreous)

more cupreous (comparative)
most cupreous (superlative)

From Latin cupreus, from cuprum (“copper”).

Of a reddish-brown color, like that of polished copper.


dove grey

dove grey:

(British spelling) A medium grey colour with a slight tint of pink or blue, like that of a dove.


dove grey

The interior colour scheme departs from the conventional L.T. red and green upholstery and matching paintwork, which has been replaced by a maroon and grey moquette with dove grey paint below the waist rail.

1960 February, “The first of London's new Piccadilly Line trains is delivered”, in Trains Illustrated, page 94:

(British spelling) Of a medium grey colour with a slight tint of pink or blue, like that of a dove.


eau de nil

Unadapted borrowing from French eau de nil (literally “water of the Nile”).


eggshell blue

The sky was clear and eggshell blue.

2005, Gareth Roberts, Only Human, page 63:


floral white

en-noun

floral white (countable and uncountable, plural floral whites)

floral white:


gainsboro

A color named "gainsboro" was added to the X11 color chart by Paul Raveling in 1989. Raveling explained that he introduced a number of "light and off-white colors, copied from several Sinclair Paints color samples", of which gainsboro appears to be one.

gainsboro:

By using light gray or Gainsboro we are using Edward Tufte's principle of "minimum effective difference" to put in ancillary information.

2005 May 21, David Park, “Re: GridLines issue”, in comp.soft-sys.math.mathematica (Usenet):

When the temperature reached to^([sic]) about 40 °C, the color of characters began to change, and it changed completely from black to gainsboro when the temperature rose to about 50 °C. As the[…]film cooled down to the room temperature, the color returned to black.

2017, Guoliang Wang et al., “AgNW/Chinese Xuan paper film heaters for electro-thermochromic paper display”, in Materials Research Express, volume 4, number 11:


goldenrod

goldenrod (countable and uncountable, plural goldenrods)

/ˈɡoʊldənˌɹɑd/

Any tall-stemmed plant principally from genus Solidago (also Oligoneuron), usually with clusters of small yellow flowers.

She wore a goldenrod dress with a scooping neckline.

2020, Brit Bennett, The Vanishing Half, Dialogue Books, page 160:

goldenrod:

A golden-yellow colour, like that of the goldenrod plant.


goldenrod

en-adj

goldenrod (comparative more goldenrod, superlative most goldenrod)

more goldenrod (comparative)
most goldenrod (superlative)

/ˈɡoʊldənˌɹɑd/

Of a golden-yellow colour, like that of the goldenrod plant.


grizzle

From Middle English grisel, gryselle, from Old French grisel, from gris (“grey”), from Frankish *grīs, from Proto-Germanic *grīsaz.


grizzle

en-verb

grizzle (third-person singular simple present grizzles, present participle grizzling, simple past and past participle grizzled)

grizzles (present singular third-person)
grizzling (participle present)
grizzled (participle past)
grizzled (past)

[Wilfred:] In tears, eh? What a plague art thou grizzling for now?

1888, W[illiam] S[chwenck] Gilbert, Arthur Sullivan, composer, The Yeomen of the Guard […] , London: Chappel & Co., […], published c. 1911:

R. J. Tizard — What are you grizzling about now?

1976, New Zealand House of Representatives, Parliamentary Debates, page 4850:

The pin-thin girl is grizzling, whining that she has sand in her eyes.

2009, Judy Waite, Game Girls, unnumbered page:

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, slang) To whinge or whine.

New mothers frequently complain that their partner won't get up to change a wet nappy or comfort a grizzling baby.

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, slang) To fuss or cry


gunmetal-grey

The Altamaha-ha, as the serpent has been named, is said to be from twelve to twenty feet long, about two feet in diameter, and gunmetal gray on top with a creamy underside. Most descriptions suggest a creature that is part eel, part alligator, ...

2005, Emily Ellison, Chuck Perry, Liars and Legends, Thomas Nelson, →ISBN:

Of a dark grey colour with a tint of blue.


lurid

en-adj

lurid (comparative more lurid, superlative most lurid)

more lurid (comparative)
most lurid (superlative)

Borrowed from Latin lūridus (“pale yellow, wan”).

The accident was described with lurid detail.

Speculating on why publishers rejected it, he wonders whether it was deemed too lurid at the time, especially since Steinbeck was then an unknown author.

2021 May 22, Dalya Alberge, “John Steinbeck’s estate urged to let the world read his shunned werewolf novel”, in The Observer:

Shocking, horrifying, especially when it comes to violence or sex.

Fierce o'er their beauty blazed the lurid flame;

Wrapt in drifts of lurid smoke / On the misty river-tide.

1855, Alfred Tennyson, “Maud”, in Maud, and Other Poems, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 86:

The great banths sniffed the unfamiliar odours, and then with a rush they broke past us with low growls, swarming across the gardens beneath the lurid light of the nearer moon.

1913 January–May, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “The Gods of Mars”, in The All-Story, New York, N.Y.: Frank A. Munsey Co., →OCLC; republished as “Corridors of Peril”, in The Gods of Mars, Chicago, Ill.: A[lexander] C[aldwell] McClurg & Co., 1918 September, →OCLC, page 85:

The lurid lighting of the bar made for a very hazy atmosphere.

a lurid plant with maroon leaves and pink flowers

(botany) Having a brown colour tinged with red.

(zoology) Having a colour tinged with purple, yellow, and grey.


brockle

brockle (comparative more brockle, superlative most brockle)

more brockle (comparative)
most brockle (superlative)

Uncertain: possibly from Scots, Back-formation from broccoli.

Of food odors: malodorous, flatulent, pungent: smelling of sulfur, hydrogen sulfide, or hydrogen disulfide.


heather

en-noun

heather (countable and uncountable, plural heathers)

From Middle English hather, hathir, from Old English *hǣddre and hǣþ (“heather”), cognate with Scots hedder, hadder, heddir (“heather”), Saterland Frisian Heede (“heather”), West Frisian heide (“heather”), Dutch heide (“heather”), German Low German Heide, Heid (“heather”), German Heide (“heather”).

The cutting sides were gay with heather in bloom, and masses of dainty Scots bluebells, while patches of clear sky overhead were bringing life and colour to the sea.

1947 January and February, O. S. Nock, “"The Aberdonian" in Wartime”, in Railway Magazine, page 9:

Calluna vulgaris
Calluna vulgaris#Translingual

An evergreen plant, Calluna vulgaris, with spiky leaves and small purple, pink, or white flowers.

heather:

A purple colour with a tint of pink and blue.


heather

Of a purple colour with a tint of pink and blue.


hoar

non-rhotic, without the horse–hoarse merger

From Middle English hor, hore, from Old English hār (“hoar, hoary, grey, old”), from Proto-West Germanic *hair, from Proto-Germanic *hairaz (“grey”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ḱeh₃- (“grey, dark”). Cognate with German hehr (“noble, sublime”), Herr (“sir, gentleman”), Scottish Gaelic ciar (“dusky”), and Russian се́рый (séryj, “grey”).

der

hoar:

His grants are engrafted on the public law of Europe, covered with the awful hoar of innumerable ages.

1796, Edmund Burke, A Letter from the Right Honourable Edmund Burke to a Noble Lord, 10th edition, London: For J. Owen, and F. and C. Rivington, page 52:


hoar

hoar waters

1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book II, Canto XII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 10:

old trees with trunks all hoar

1816, Lord Byron, “Canto III”, in Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage. Canto the Third, London: Printed for John Murray, […], →OCLC, stanza CI:

Bright fell the moonlight on pillar and court and shattered wall, hiding all their rents and imperfections in its silver garment, and clothing their hoar majesty with the peculiar glory of the night.

1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC:

And lo, where rapt in beauty's heavenly dream
Hoar Plato walks his olived Academe.

1751, Thomas Warton, Newmarket, a Satire:

This is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines and the hemlocks,
Bearded with moss, and in garments green, indistinct in the twilight,
Stand like Druids of eld, with voices sad and prophetic,
Stand like harpers hoar, with beards that rest on their bosoms.

1847 November 1, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Evangeline, a Tale of Acadie, Boston, Mass.: William D. Ticknor & Company, →OCLC, (please specify either |part=I or II):

But a hare that is hoar / Is too much for a score / When it hoars ere it be spent.

c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iv], line 134:

Be Thou with me until Old-age, and even to hoar hairs do Thou carrie me. P. Isa. 46.4.

1648, Lancelot Andrewes, A manual of directions for the sick with many sweet meditations and devotions of the R. Reverend Father in God, Lancelot Andrews, late L. Bishop of Winchester: to which are added praiers for the morning, evening and H. communion, page 202:

The great popularity of the Stuarts—certainly more allied to personal causes than we can at present calculate—is a curious fact. It was not one of those feelings drawn from hoar antiquity, when habit has become religion.

1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XVI, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume I, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 173:

(archaic) Figuratively, grey-haired with age.


honeydew

en-noun

honeydew (countable and uncountable, plural honeydews)

The noun is derived from honey + dew, originally believed to be a form of dew that fell from the sky like rain onto plants (see sense 1).
The adjective is derived from the noun.

[F]reſh teares / Stood on her cheeks, as doth the honie dew, / Vpon a gathred Lillie almoſt withered.

c. 1588–1593 (date written), [William Shakespeare], The Most Lamentable Romaine Tragedie of Titus Andronicus: […] (First Quarto), London: […] Iohn Danter, and are to be sold by Edward White & Thomas Millington, […], published 1594, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i]:

In India, and eſpecially in the region of the Praſians, it raineth many times a dew like liquid hony falling vppon the hearbs and graſſe of the earth: wherefore the ſhepheards lead their flocks vnto thoſe places, wherwithal their cattle are much delighted, and ſuch as is the food they eat, ſuch alſo is the taſt of the milke they render; […] Such a kind of dew the Hæbrewes call Manna, the Græcians Aeromelos, and Droſomelos: The Germaines Himmelhung: and in Engliſh Honny-dew: […]

1658, Edward Topsel [i.e., Edward Topsell], “Of the Sheepe”, in The History of Four-footed Beasts and Serpents: […], London: […] E. Cotes, for G. Sawbridge […], T. Williams […], and T. Johnson […], →OCLC, page 603:

Weave a circle round him thrice, / And close your eyes with holy dread: / For he on honey-dew hath fed, / And drank the milk of Paradise.

1797, S[amuel] T[aylor] Coleridge, “Kubla Khan: Or A Vision in a Dream”, in Christabel: Kubla Khan, a Vision: The Pains of Sleep, London: […] John Murray, […], by William Bulmer and Co. […], published 1816, →OCLC, page 58:

(uncountable) A sweet liquid substance resembling the substance mentioned in sense 1, such as honey, nectar, or manna in the Bible.

مَنّ

(countable) Short for honeydew melon (“a melon from the Cucumis melo Inodorus cultivar group, with sweet, light green or white flesh and a smooth greenish-white or yellow rind”).

honeydew melon

honeydew:

(uncountable) A light green colour, like the flesh of some honeydew melons.


honeydew

en-adj

honeydew (comparative more honeydew, superlative most honeydew)

more honeydew (comparative)
most honeydew (superlative)

Of a light green colour, like the flesh of some honeydew melons.


hot pink

hot pink (comparative more hot pink, superlative most hot pink)

more hot pink (comparative)
most hot pink (superlative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-hot pink.wav


lemon chiffon

lemon chiffon:

A very light yellow, like that of lemon chiffon pie.


lemon chiffon

Of a very light yellow, like that of lemon chiffon pie.


lovat

en-noun

lovat (countable and uncountable, plural lovats)

lovat:


malachite

en-adj

malachite (comparative more malachite, superlative most malachite)

more malachite (comparative)
most malachite (superlative)

From Middle French malachite, from Latin molochītis, from Ancient Greek μολόχη (molókhē, “[leaf of the ... ] mallow plant”).

der

Of a colour ranging from olive-taupe to a mild to deeply-rich (at times seemingly translucent) green, like that of the mineral which is present on oxidized copper.


mint cream

en-noun

mint cream (countable and uncountable, plural mint creams)

mint cream:

A very faint green color, like that of crème de menthe.

A chocolate filled with peppermint fondant.


mint cream

Of a very faint green color, like that of crème de menthe.


misty rose

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-misty rose.wav

Of very faint pink color, like that of a rose veiled in mist.


moss green

dark moss green:

A dark green colour with a tint of yellow, like that of moss.

pale moss green:

A pale greyish green color, like that of lichen.


moss green

Of a dark green colour with a tint of yellow, like that of moss.

Of a pale greyish green color, like that of lichen.


Navajo white

Navajo white (countable and uncountable, plural Navajo whites)

Navajo white:

Navajo white (color corresponding to RGB code FFDEAD)


off-white

off-white (countable and uncountable, plural off-whites)

off-white:

A very pale colour that is almost white.


off-white

Of a very pale colour that is almost white.

възбя́л

of a very pale colour that is almost white


pea green

pea green:

A medium green colour, like that of peas.


pea green

The pea-green colour of the South-Western engines, with the curious buff-and-amber of the carriages, was also a novelty, as were the raised top-decks of the older guards' vans.

1939 June, T.R. Perkins, “My Red-Letter Day - II”, in Railway Magazine, page 400:

Of a yellowish green colour, like that of peas.


old lace

old lace:

A off-white colour, like that of old lace.


old lace

Of an off-white colour, like that of old lace.


pistachio green

pistachio green (plural pistachio greens)

pistachio green:

A pale yellow-green colour, like that of the pistachio nut.


pistachio green

Of a pale yellow-green colour, like that of the pistachio nut.


pearl grey

pearl grey:

A pale grey colour, tinted with blue, like that of some pearls.


pearl grey

Of a pale grey colour, tinted with blue, like that of some pearls.


pewter

pewter (countable and uncountable, plural pewters)

→ Welsh: piwter

From Middle English peutre, from Old French peautre, from Vulgar Latin *peltrum (“pewter”), which is of uncertain origin. Possibly related to spelter.


pearly

pearly (countable and uncountable, plural pearlies)

pearly:

In nature we as often find the light cool as warm; also in the pictures of many of the Flemish and Dutch schools, where, as Sir Joshua himself mentions, " the silver gray or pearly is predominant, and are valued by the connoisseurs in proportion as they possess this excellence of a silver tint."

1830, John Burnet, A practical treatise on painting, page 3:

Pearly is that silky and often coloured lustre which renders of such value

When (the scales are) more developed and thickened, the color (pearly) is deepened, shading

1899, St. Louis medical and surgical journal, page 126:

(uncountable, uncommon, dated) A pale greyish white colour, tinted with blue.

(countable, British, slang, especially in plural) A tooth.


pearly

en-adj

pearly (comparative pearlier, superlative pearliest)

pearlier (comparative)
pearliest (superlative)

Of a pale greyish white colour, tinted with blue.


rifle green

en-noun

rifle green (countable and uncountable, plural rifle greens)

rifle green:

A dark green colour, like that of the British Army rifleman uniform.


rifle green

Of a dark green colour, like that of the British Army rifleman uniform.


saddle brown

saddle brown:

A medium brown colour, like that of a saddle.


saddle brown

Of a medium brown colour, like that of a saddle.


sage green

sage green:

A greyish green colour, like that of sage.


sage green

Of a greyish green colour, like that of sage.

сивозелен

of a greyish green colour, like that of sage


seashell

The seashells on the beach are toxic and best avoided.

seashell:

A very light pink colour, like that of some seashells.


seashell

Of a very light pink colour, like that of some seashells.


silver-grey

silver-grey:


slate gray

slate gray (countable and uncountable, plural slate grays)

slate gray:

savenharmaa

dark bluish-grey colour — see also slate, slate blue, blue-gray


slate gray

schiefergrau

of a dark bluish-grey colour — see also of a dark bluish-grey colour


sorrel

sorrel (countable and uncountable, plural sorrels)

From Middle English sorel, from Old French sorel, surele (“sorrel”), from Old French sur (“sour”), of Germanic origin, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *sūraz (“sour”); equivalent to sour + -el (diminutive suffix). Compare Old English sūre (“sorrel”), Icelandic súra (“sorrel”), Dutch zuring (“dock (plant), sorrel”). More at sour.

Rumex acetosa
Rumex acetosa#Translingual

Any of various plants with acidic leaves of the genus Rumex, especially

Rumex acetosa (common sorrel, garden sorrel), sometimes used as a salad vegetable.

Members of genus Oxalis or family Oxalidaceae, woodsorrels.

Now, many people drink alcohol, but when I was a child I remember drinking sorrel, ginger beer and drinks made from fresh fruits such as soursop and passion-fruit. Sorrel was prepared over a long period, not as quickly as it is now.

2007, African and Caribbean Celebrations, →ISBN, page 56:

For instance, one day we were sitting on the porch, looking down at the lagoon and the yachts from all over the world. He was drinking ginger beer mixed with rum, and I was drinking sorrel. No rum. Out of nowhere, he proposed.

2009, C. C. Alick, Dancing with the Yumawalli: Inspired by True Events, page 62:

Joy and the parents did not go either; we spent a quiet day at home, eating roast chicken and stuffing with our own green-gungu rice and peas, and drinking sorrel.

2012, Claudette Beckford-Brady, Sweet Home, Jamaica, page 390:

Hibiscus sabdariffa
Hibiscus sabdariffa#Translingual

A drink, consumed especially in the Caribbean around Christmas, made from the flowers of Hibiscus sabdariffa: hibiscus tea.


sorrel

From Middle English *sorel, from Middle French *sorel, sorrel, surrel, from Middle French sor (“yellowish-brown, reddish-brown”), probably from Old Frankish *saur (“dried”), from Proto-Germanic *sauzaz (“dry”), from Proto-Indo-European *saus- (“dry, parched”); equivalent to sore (“reddish-brown”) + -el (diminutive suffix). Cognate with Middle Dutch soor (“dry”), Old High German sōrēn (“to become dry”), and Old English sēar (“withered, barren”). See also sere.

suffix

sorrel:


sorrel

A little harmless gossip ensued on various themes, such as where old Aunt Sally got her new red head-kerchief, and how "Missis was a going to give Lizzy that spotted muslin gown, when she 'd got her new berage made up;" and how Mas'r Shelby was thinking of buying a new sorrel colt, that was going to prove an addition to the glories of the place.

1851 June – 1852 April, Harriet Beecher Stowe, chapter 4, in Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life among the Lowly, volume I, Boston, Mass.: John P[unchard] Jewett & Company; Cleveland, Oh.: Jewett, Proctor & Worthington, published 20 March 1852, →OCLC, page 50:

Of a brown colour, with a tint of red. (especially: a sorrel horse)


spring green

en-noun

spring green (countable and uncountable, plural spring greens)

spring green:

The chip smells like nothing, but tastes like a smörgåsbord that’s both confusing and arousing, like Steve Buscemi. Flecks of spring green – the kind generated from radioactive waste – coat the unwieldy triangles. The seasoning is a kaleidoscope of Day-Glo dust particles that perishes under saliva and tongue.

2022 April 20, Mariella Rudi, “Tostitos Hint of Lime has zero lime – but it’s still the perfect chip”, in The Guardian:

A fresh green colour that reminds one of spring.


spring green

Of a fresh green colour that reminds one of spring.


titian

Named after Titian (Italian Tiziano), the Italian painter who made frequent use of this colour.

lang

<i class="Latn mention" lang="en">Titian</i>

titian:

A bright auburn colour, tinted with gold.


titian

en-adj

titian (comparative more titian, superlative most titian)

more titian (comparative)
most titian (superlative)

Of a bright auburn colour, tinted with gold, especially in reference to hair.


tow-colored

Of a pale yellow colour, like that of flax.


violet red

Of a deep purplish pink colour, like that of some violets.


wheaten

wheaten (comparative more wheaten, superlative most wheaten)

more wheaten (comparative)
most wheaten (superlative)

From Middle English wheten, from Old English hwǣten (“wheaten”); equivalent to wheat + -en.

Of a pale yellow-beige colour, like that of wheat.


wheaten

wheaten:

A pale yellow or beige colour, like that of wheat.


platinum blond

en-noun

platinum blond (countable and uncountable, plural platinum blonds)


amaranthine

amaranthine (countable and uncountable, plural amaranthines)

/ˌæm.əˈɹæn.θɪn/

1660s, coined by Milton, originally in sense "unfading", as amaranth + -ine, from Ancient Greek ἀμάραντος (amárantos, “unfading”). Later used for color.

uder

Ah! when the eternal morning dawns,
And amaranthines shall displace the thorns […]

1857, Eleanor Duckworth, Milly Wentworth, Poems and Sketches, page 65:


amaranthine

en-adj

amaranthine (comparative more amaranthine, superlative most amaranthine)

more amaranthine (comparative)
most amaranthine (superlative)

/ˌæm.əˈɹæn.θɪn/

[…] The angelick blast
Filled all the regions: from their blisful bowers
Of amarantine shade, fountain or spring,
By the waters of life, where’er they sat
In fellowships of joy, the sons of light
Hasted, resorting to the summons high

1667, John Milton, “Book XI”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

Ah! is Thy love indeed
A weed, albeit an amaranthine weed,
Suffering no flowers except its own to mount?

1893, Francis Thompson, The Hound of Heaven:

“Fuchsia,” said the Doctor, “come along this evening and I’ll give you a tonic which you must make her take every day. By all that’s amaranthine you really must. […]”

1946, Mervyn Peake, Titus Groan, London: Eyre & Spottiswoode:

Relating to the mythical amaranth flower that never fades.

Relating to, or having the form of plants of the genus Amaranthus.


royal purple

en-noun

royal purple (countable and uncountable, plural royal purples)

royal purple:


royal purple

Of a deep vibrant reddish purple colour.


oxblood

en-adj

oxblood (comparative more oxblood, superlative most oxblood)

more oxblood (comparative)
most oxblood (superlative)

He was tall and lean, with lank fair hair and a square jaw, togged out in tweeds and a checked shirt and scuffed, oxblood brogues.


chrome red

en-noun

chrome red (countable and uncountable, plural chrome reds)


Congo red

Congo red (countable and uncountable, plural Congo reds)

A dye that turns red in alkaline, blue in acidic solutions.


gules

LL-Q1860 (eng)-I learned some phrases-gules.wav

From Middle English goules, from Old French geule (“animal’s mouth, throat”) via Middle French geules. Compare with French gueules, Portuguese goelas and Spanish gules.

uder

gules:

(heraldry) Red, e.g. on a coat of arms, typically represented in engraving by vertical parallel lines.


gules

The symbol of the Red Cross is a cross gules.

Now is he total gules, horridly tricked

1602, William Shakespeare, Hamlet, ii 2:

You know they still
Call themselves Bulls, though thus degenerate,
And everything relating to a Bull
Is popular and respectable in Thebes.
Their arms are seven Bulls in a field gules;
They think their strength consists in eating beef,—

1820, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Oedipus Tyrannus; Or, Swellfoot The Tyrant: A Tragedy in Two Acts:

(heraldry) In blazon, of the colour red.


purpure

From Middle English purpure, from Old English purpure and Old French purpure (“purple”); both from Latin purpura. Doublet of purple and purpura.

Many authorities reject the authenticity of purpure as a tincture.

purpure:

(heraldry) A purple colour on a coat of arms, represented in engraving by diagonal parallel lines 45 degrees clockwise.


purpure

(heraldry) In blazon, of the colour purple.


aftertaste

A taste of something that persists when it is no longer present.

Many people think certain artificial sweeteners have an unpleasant aftertaste.

The persistence of the taste of something no longer present.


color blindness

en-noun

color blindness (countable and uncountable, plural color blindnesses)

color blind + -ness or color + blindness

(medicine, ophthalmology) Any of several medical conditions in which the physical ability to see colors is impaired, especially achromatopsia, Daltonism.

عمى الألوان

condition in which the ability to see colors is impaired


auditory

Borrowed from Latin audītōrius (“pertaining to a hearer or hearing”), from audiō (“to hear”) + -tōrius (“-tory”, adjectival suffix).

af

Of, or relating to hearing, or to the sense or organs of hearing.


ashy

en-adj

ashy (comparative ashier, superlative ashiest)

ashier (comparative)
ashiest (superlative)

From Middle English asshy, asky, equivalent to ash + -y.

Still is he sullein, still he lowres and frets,
Twixt crimson shame, and anger ashie pale,

1593, [William Shakespeare], Venus and Adonis, London: […] Richard Field, […], →OCLC:

Tell her that sicknesse, with her ashie hand,
Hath swept away the beauty from my cheekes,

1634 (first performance), Thomas Heywood, Loves Maistresse: Or, The Queens Masque. […], London: […] Robert Raworth, for Iohn Crowch; and are to bee sold by Iasper Emery, […], published 1636, →OCLC, Act IIII:

Again the operation; again the narcotic; again some return of colour to the ashy cheeks, and the regular breathing of healthy sleep.

1897, Bram Stoker, chapter 11, in Dracula, New York, N.Y.: Modern Library, →OCLC, chapter IX, page 126:

Beyond that black clot the sea lay, pale with last ashy gleam of day.

1968, Ursula K. Le Guin, chapter 7, in A Wizard of Earthsea, page 123:

Resembling ashes (especially in colour); (of a person’s complexion) unusually pale as a result of strong emotion, illness, etc.

Ye heauenly spirites, whose ashie cinders lie
Vnder deep ruines, with huge walls opprest,

1591, Ed[mund] Sp[enser], “Ruines of Rome”, in Complaints. Containing Sundrie Small Poemes of the Worlds Vanitie. […], London: […] William Ponsonbie, […], →OCLC:

[…] where yet the Embers glow,
Wide o’er the Pyle the sable Wine they throw,
And deep subsides the ashy Heap below.

1715–1720, Homer, translated by Alexander Pope, “Book 23”, in The Iliad of Homer, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: […] W[illiam] Bowyer, for Bernard Lintott […], →OCLC, page 75:

[…] I saw her sitting on the hearth in a ragged chair, close before, and lost in the contemplation of, the ashy fire.

1860 December – 1861 August, Charles Dickens, chapter X, in Great Expectations […], volume III, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published October 1861, →OCLC, page 151:

He lit the paper until it burned to an ashy film.

1991, Edwidge Danticat, “A Wall of Fire Rising”, in Krik? Krak!, New York: Soho Press:

Comprising, containing, or covered with ash.


naked eye

Eyesight, unaided by equipment such as a telescope or microscope.

неозбро́єне о́ко n (neozbrójene óko, literally “unarmed eye”)

неозбро́єним о́ком (neozbrójenym ókom, literally “with an unarmed eye”)


stinky

stinky (comparative stinkier or more stinky, superlative stinkiest or most stinky)

stinkier (comparative)
more stinky (comparative)
stinkiest (superlative)
most stinky (superlative)

From Middle English stinky, stynky, equivalent to stink + -y. Compare Dutch stinkig (“stinky, foul, rotten”), German stinkig (“stinky”), Hunsrik stinkich.

What's that stinky smell?

Having a strong, unpleasant smell; stinking.


Chinese red

Of a vivid red colour tinted with orange.


Indian red

1672 pigment, c. 1810–27 colour and adjective. Indian + red, the pigment originally being an earth obtained from the East Indies.

Having the colour of Indian red pigment.


Lincoln green

From Lincoln, England, where the cloth of this colour was originally produced.

Lincoln green:


Lincoln green

Lincoln green (comparative more Lincoln green, superlative most Lincoln green)

more Lincoln green (comparative)
most Lincoln green (superlative)


Luna

From Middle English lune, luna (“the moon”), from Latin lūna/Lūna, from Proto-Indo-European *lówksneh₂. Doublet of Roxane.

4. Luna, a Mantle of Estate, Mars doubled Ermine, ouched Sol, garnished with Strings fastned thereunto fretways dependent, and tasselled of the same. [...] These Arms do belong to the Town of Beckbock in Wales.

1693, Richard Blome, The Art of Heraldry, in two parts ... second edition ..., pages 76-77:

George [...] Ist. Mars, three Lions passant guardant in Pale Sol, for the Arms of England, Impal'd with Scotland, i.e. Sol, a Lion rampant within a double Tressure counterflory Mars. 2d. Jupiter, three Fleurs de Lis Sol, for the Arms of France. 3d. Jupiter, an Irish Harp Sol, stringed Luna, for Ireland. 4th. Seme party per Pale, and per Chevron enarche, in the Ist Mars, two Lions passant guardant Sol, for Brunswick. In the 2d Partition Sol, semy of Hearts Mars, and a Lion rampant Jupiter, armed and langued of the First, for Luneburg. The base is Mars, a Horse currant Luna, over these last on an Inescocheon, Constantine's Crown.

1718, Samuel Kent, The Grammar of Heraldry … Second Edition:

8. Tierce in Mantle, first Mars, two Lions passant-guardant in pale, Sol, for Brunswick; 2d Sol, Semi of Hearts proper, a Lion rampant Jupiter, for Lunenburgh; 3d, ente en Point, Mars, an Horse currant Luna, for Saxony.

1735, Francis Nichols, The Irish Compendium … vol. III of the British Compendium, second edition, page 80:

The third, the Ensign of Ireland, which is, Jupiter, an Harp Sol, stringed Luna.

1737, Benjamin Martin, Bibliotheca Technologica: Or, a Philological Library, page 631:

(heraldry, rare) Argent (silver), in the postmedieval practice of blazoning the tinctures of certain sovereigns' (especially British monarchs') coats as planets.


Mars

From Middle English Mars, from Latin Mārs (“god of war”), from older Latin (older than 75 BCE) Māvors.

4. Luna, a Mantle of Estate, Mars doubled Ermine, ouched Sol, garnished with Strings fastned thereunto fretways dependent, and tasselled of the same. [...] These Arms do belong to the Town of Beckbock in Wales. 5. Jupiter, a Mace of Majestry in Bend Sol. [...] 12. Venus, a Staff in Pale Sol, and thereupon a Cross Pattee, Luna surmounted off a Pall of the last, charged with 4. like Crosses fitched Saturn, edged and stringed as the second. This Coat belongs to the Archiepiscopal See of Canterbury, to whose place it appertains to Crown and Inaugurate the Kings of England.

George [...] Ist. Mars, three Lions passant guardant in Pale Sol, for the Arms of England, Impal'd with Scotland, i.e. Sol, a Lion rampant within a double Tressure counterflory Mars. 2d. Jupiter, three Fleurs de Lis Sol, for the Arms of France. 3d. Jupiter, an Irish Harp Sol, stringed Luna, for Ireland. 4th. Seme party per Pale, and per Chevron enarche, in the Ist Mars, two Lions passant guardant Sol, for Brunswick. In the 2d Partition Sol, semy of Hearts Mars, and a Lion rampant Jupiter, armed and langued of the First, for Luneburg. The base is Mars, a Horse currant Luna, over these last on an Inescocheon, Constantine's Crown. All within the Garter. Above the whole a Helmet suitable to his Majesty's Royal Jurisdiction, upon the same a rich Mantle of Cloth of Gold, doubled Ermine, a[…]

8. Tierce in Mantle, first Mars, two Lions passant-guardant in pale, Sol, for Brunswick; 2d Sol, Semi of Hearts proper, a Lion rampant Jupiter, for Lunenburgh; 3d, ente en Point, Mars, an Horse currant Luna, for Saxony. Note, these Ensigns (which are the paternal Coat of his Majesty King George) I have added as an Example, to shew the Form of what foreign Heralds term Tierce in Mantle, ente en Pointe, &c. […]

ARMS. QUARTERLY, in the first grand Quarter Mars, three Lions passant-guardant in Pale, Sol; the Imperial Ensigns of England, impaled with the Royal Arms of Scotland, which are Sol, a Lion rampant within a double Tressure flower'd and counterflower'd with Fleurs-de-lis, Mars. The second Quarter is the Royal Arms of France, viz. Jupiter, three Fleurs-de-lis, Sol. The third, the Ensign of Ireland, which is, Jupiter, an Harp Sol, stringed Luna.

(heraldry, rare) Gules (red), in the postmedieval practice of blazoning the tinctures of certain sovereigns' (especially British monarchs') coats as planets.


Prussian blue

en-noun

Prussian blue (countable and uncountable, plural Prussian blues)

The pigment was discovered circa 1700 in the German state of Prussia by a paint-maker named Diesbach.

(inorganic chemistry) An insoluble dark, bright blue pigment, ferric ferrocyanide (equivalent to ferrous ferricyanide), used in painting and dyeing, and as an antidote for certain kinds of heavy metal poisoning.

Prussian blue:

A moderate to rich blue colour, tinted with deep greenish blue.


Prussian blue

en-adj

Prussian blue (comparative more Prussian blue, superlative most Prussian blue)

more Prussian blue (comparative)
most Prussian blue (superlative)

Of a rich blue colour, tinted with green.


Sol

4. Luna, a Mantle of Estate, Mars doubled Ermine, ouched Sol, garnished with Strings fastned thereunto fretways dependent, and tasselled of the same. [...] These Arms do belong to the Town of Beckbock in Wales. 5. Jupiter, a Mace of Majestry in Bend Sol.

George [...] Ist. Mars, three Lions passant guardant in Pale Sol, for the Arms of England, Impal'd with Scotland, i.e. Sol, a Lion rampant within a double Tressure counterflory Mars. 2d. Jupiter, three Fleurs de Lis Sol, for the Arms of France. 3d. Jupiter, an Irish Harp Sol, stringed Luna, for Ireland. 4th. Seme party per Pale, and per Chevron enarche, in the Ist Mars, two Lions passant guardant Sol, for Brunswick. In the 2d Partition Sol, semy of Hearts Mars, and a Lion rampant Jupiter, armed and langued of the First, for Luneburg.

8. Tierce in Mantle, first Mars, two Lions passant-guardant in pale, Sol, for Brunswick; 2d Sol, Semi of Hearts proper, a Lion rampant Jupiter, for Lunenburgh;

(heraldry, rare) Or (gold), in the postmedieval practice of blazoning the tinctures of certain sovereigns' (especially British monarchs') coats as planets.


Tyrian purple

en-noun

Tyrian purple (countable and uncountable, plural Tyrian purples)

A deep purple dyestuff obtained from the bodies of mollusks of certain species of the family Muricidae, originally certain of those of the eastern Mediterranean, now also other species from elsewhere.

Tyrian purple:

A deep purple colour, tinted with red, like that of the dye.


Tyrian purple

Of a deep purple colour, tinted with red, like that of the dye.


Vandyke brown

Vandyke brown (countable and uncountable, plural Vandyke browns)

This colour was named for Sir Anthony Van Dyck, a Flemish painter.

Vandyke brown:

A medium brown colour, originally a pigment made from peat or soil.


scrummy

en-adj

scrummy (comparative scrummier, superlative scrummiest)

scrummier (comparative)
scrummiest (superlative)

Of course one did get some scrummy things to eat abroad, that cook did not, somehow, produce at home; and the people looked different […]

1930, Ralph Hale Mottram, The English Miss:

There's an all day menu, with lots of fish dishes such as fish soup, tuna, and monkfish. Pudding might include a scrummy rosemary panacotta.

After mopping up the last bits with my scrummy nan breads we settled down to watch the DVD of "The Two Towers" from "Lord of the Rings" […]

2006, Julie Wilson, Our Spanish Winters:


rummy

en-noun

rummy (usually uncountable, plural rummies)

Unknown, with much speculation. Perhaps related to rum via poker slang, or ultimately from German Ruhm.

A card game with many rule variants, conceptually similar to mahjong.


rummy

en-adj

rummy (comparative rummier, superlative rummiest)

rummier (comparative)
rummiest (superlative)

a rummy flavour

“You say rummy things and you do rummy things. What I mean to say is, you're impulsive.”

1920, P. G. Wodehouse, Jill the Reckless, page 28:


rummy

No one has forgotten Frank Dodd, the crossing guard who went crazy here twelve years ago and killed those women, and they haven't forgotten the dog, either, the one that came down with rabies and killed Joe Camber and the old rummy down the road from him.


champagne

en-noun

champagne (countable and uncountable, plural champagnes)

Borrowed from French champagne (“sparkling wine from the Champagne region”), from Champagne (“region and former province of France”), from Late Latin campānia (in full Campānia Rēmēnsis), from campāneus (“of or pertaining to the fields”), from Latin campus (“level ground; field, plain”), from Proto-Indo-European *kh₂emp- (“to bend, curve”). The English word is a doublet of campagna (“flat stretch of countryside”) (dated), campaign, and campania.

cava

Spanish sparkling white wine made with the méthode champenoise

crémant

French sparkling wine that isn't from the Champagne region

prosecco

Italian sparkling white wine made by dual fermentation method in vats

spumante

Italian sparkling wine, sometimes made with the méthode champenoise

(countable, uncountable, informal) Any sparkling white wine.

shampanjë

sparkling white wine produced in Champagne


cherry red

Of a deep bright red colour, like that of a cherry.


glaucous

en-adj

glaucous (comparative more glaucous, superlative most glaucous)

more glaucous (comparative)
most glaucous (superlative)

From Latin glaucus, from Ancient Greek γλαυκός (glaukós, “blue-green, blue-grey”), 1670s. See Irish glas.

der

glaucous:

I realised I was the only shopper in that rather eerie place where I moved about fishlike, in a glaucous aquarium […]

[…] inside you could see the wires and cables that ran aft to the rudder and elevators and the cracked and curled and sunblacked leather of the seats and in their tarnished nickel bezels the glass of instrument dials glaucous and clouded from the pumicing of the desert sands.

Traveling at sea for the first time is a chance to realize that the ocean is not one ocean. The water changes. The Atlantic that seethes off the eastern U.S. is glaucous and lightless and looks mean. Around Jamaica, though, it’s more like a milky aquamarine, and translucent.

1997, David Foster Wallace, “A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again”, in A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again, Kindle edition, Little, Brown Book Group:

Of a pale grey or bluish-green, especially when covered with a powdery residue.

сивозеленикав

of a pale green colour with a bluish-grey tinge

glauque (typically greener, whereas English glaucous is bluer)


cool grey

cool grey:


mocha

en-noun

mocha (countable and uncountable, plural mochas)

From Mocha, Yemen, a port on the Red Sea, from Arabic اَلْمُخَا (al-muḵā), for its role as a major marketplace for coffee during Ottoman rule.
The beans often had a chocolaty flavor, hence by extension came to refer to any coffee with a chocolate flavor, or any mixture of coffee and chocolate flavors, notably coffee with chocolate syrup added.

mocha:

A dark brown colour, like that of mocha coffee.

Any of a number of species of moths in the geometrid subfamily Sterrhinae, many European species having dark brown coloration.

(historical) An Abyssinian weight, equivalent to a Troy grain.


mocha

Of a dark brown colour, like that of mocha coffee.


bice green

en-adj

bice green (comparative more bice green, superlative most bice green)

more bice green (comparative)
most bice green (superlative)

Of a bright green colour, like that of a leaf.


bottle green

en-noun

bottle green (countable and uncountable, plural bottle greens)

bottle green:

He stopped to look at a shop selling ladies' wear, and stared for a long time at a bottle-green suit of corduroy slacks.

1946, George Johnston, Skyscrapers in the Mist, page 35:

Anne Talbot looked demurely ravishing, as was her intention, in a very low-cut evening frock of bottle-green, choker of Kelantan silver, earrings in the shape of krises.

1958, Anthony Burgess, The Enemy in the Blanket (The Malayan Trilogy), published 1972, page 292:

A dark green colour, like that of some wine bottles.


bottle green

en-adj

bottle green (comparative more bottle green, superlative most bottle green)

more bottle green (comparative)
most bottle green (superlative)

Of a dark green colour, like that of some wine bottles.


baby blue

baby blue (comparative more baby blue, superlative most baby blue)

more baby blue (comparative)
most baby blue (superlative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-baby blue.wav


coal black

From Middle English colblak, colblake, cole-blak, cole-blake, coleblacke, colle blake, from the phrase blak as cole (“black as coal”).

coal black:

A black colour, like that of coal; charcoal.


ecru

en-noun

ecru (countable and uncountable, plural ecrus)

ecru:

We have descended Tian Shan and entered the Taklamakan Desert, a barren landscape painted in ecru—no shrubs, no grass, only waves upon waves of naked ridges the color of buff, the highest few spotted with white specks of snow.

2009, Y.J. Zhu, “Taklamakan Desert Moon Ride”, in Lucy McCauley, editor, The Best Women's Travel Writing 2009: True Stories from Around the World (Travelers' Tales), →ISBN, →ISSN, →OCLC, →OL, page 154:


ecru

Miriam fell in love with a tulle-and-lace gown, but Judy returned to the first one they'd looked at, an ecru satin bridal gown...

2005, Binnie Kirshenbaum, An Almost Perfect Moment:


cornflower blue

Of a bright blue color, with a tint of purple


emerald green

Of a rich green colour, like that of an emerald.


emerald green

emerald green:

A rich green colour, like that of an emerald.

A durable vivid green pigment made from copper arsenate.


grass-green

grass-green (countable and uncountable, plural grass-greens)

From Middle English grasgrene, from Old English græsgrēne, from Proto-West Germanic *grasagrōnī, from Proto-Germanic *grasagrōniz, equivalent to grass + green.

grass-green:

A bright green color, like that of grass.


grass-green

Of a bright green color, like that of grass.


iron gray

iron gray:

A dark grey colour, with a tint of green, like iron freshly cut or broken.


iron gray

Of a dark grey colour, with a tint of green.


Kendal green

Kendal green (countable and uncountable, plural Kendal greens)

How couldst thou know these men in Kendal green?

c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iv]:

Kendal green:

A light greyish-green colour, like that of the cloth.


iridology

alternative medicine
alternative medicine

(alternative medicine) A form of alternative medicine involving the diagnosis of body ailments through the examination of the iris of the human eye.


magnolia

magnolia (countable and uncountable, plural magnolias)

Borrowed from translingual Magnolia, from French Magnol + -ia. Named after French botanist Pierre Magnol (1638–1715). The surname is a form of the male given name Magne, from Latin magnus.

There are clusters of magnolias that are so tall and green and glossy, they are impossible to climb, and the air around them always smells like peaches.

2011, Jesmyn Ward, Salvage the Bones, Bloomsbury (2017), page 158:

(countable) A tree or shrub in any species of the genus Magnolia, many with large flowers and simple leaves.

magnolia:

(countable, uncountable) A creamy white colour, like that of some magnolia flowers.


magnolia

Of a creamy white colour, like that of some magnolia flowers.


slate black

slate black:


old gold

old gold (countable and uncountable, plural old golds)

old gold:


old gold

The rose and purple notes in the rugs were toned down by hanging a panel of printed linen in the wall space between the book shelves, bound with an old gold edge of damask.

1919, Good Furniture, volume 13, page 100:


aromatherapy

aromatherapy (countable and uncountable, plural aromatherapies)

/əˌrəʊməˈθɛrəpi/

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-aromatherapy.wav

(alternative medicine) The use of selected fragrances in lotions and inhalants in an effort to affect mood and promote health.


manila

a manila envelope

Made of manila paper or material like it.

manila:

Yellow-brown; colored like manila paper.


manila

manila (usually uncountable, plural manilas)

Fiber made from abaca (Manila hemp), used to make ropes and manila paper.

A kind of cheroot manufactured in Manila.


walleye

(plural "walleye" or "walleyes") A species of gamefish, Sander vitreus, native to the Northern U.S. and Canada with pale, reflective eyes.


cross-eyed

en-adj

cross-eyed (comparative more cross-eyed, superlative most cross-eyed)

more cross-eyed (comparative)
most cross-eyed (superlative)

(British) Having both eyes oriented inward, especially involuntarily.


quercitron

en-noun

quercitron (countable and uncountable, plural quercitrons)

The black oak tree, Quercus velutina, indigenous to North America.


abram

en-adj

abram (comparative more abram, superlative most abram)

more abram (comparative)
most abram (superlative)

The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles

Oxford University Press
w:Oxford University Press


vinaceous

Borrowed from Late Latin vinaceus, from Latin vinum.

vinaceous:

A specific color among several that represent red wine.


viridian

en-noun

viridian (countable and uncountable, plural viridians)

From Latin viridis, from the verb vireō (“be verdant, sprout”).

It would be difficult to exaggerate the value of this addition to the artist’s palette. The colour of viridian is a very deep bluish green of great purity and transparency. It furnishes, with aureolin on the one hand and with ultramarine on the other, an immense number of beautiful hues, adapted to represent the colours of vegetation and of water.

1890, Arthur Herbert Church, chapter 16, in The Chemistry of Paints and Painting, 3rd edition, London: Seeley & Co., published 1901, page 195:

Then Miss Sloviak emerged from the ladies' room, hair reestablished, cheeks rouged, eyelids freshly painted a soft viridian, smelling of what I recognised as Cristalle, the fragrance worn both by my wife, Emily, and also by my lover, Sara Gaskell.

1995, Michael Chabon, Wonder Boys, Ch.1, at p.16

chromium sesquioxide
chromium sesquioxide

A bluish-green pigment made from chromium sesquioxide.

viridian:


viridian

en-adj

viridian (comparative more viridian, superlative most viridian)

more viridian (comparative)
most viridian (superlative)

spring sweeps the wood’s cathedral nave
with the green fury of a wave,
till oak and elm and beech and ash
in one viridian comber crash,
while at their feet red vetches shine,
sharp, and cold, and coralline.

1928, Humbert Wolfe, “Spring”, in This Blind Rose, London: Victor Gollancz, page 47:

We walked out on to a balcony, looking down on the bright green fields, the grey-blue river lined with viridian poplars, and the red earth paths where the peasants were driving their animals […]

1937, Robert Byron, “Bamian”, in The Road to Oxiana:


savory

savory (comparative savorier, superlative savoriest)

savorier (comparative)
savoriest (superlative)

From the Middle English savory, savourie, from Old French savouré, from Old French savourer, from Late Latin sapōrāre, from Latin sapor (“taste, flavour”), from sapiō, sapere (“taste of, have a flavour of”).

The fine restaurant presented an array of savory dishes; each was delicious.


PD

en-noun

PD (countable and uncountable, plural PDs)

(ophthalmology) Initialism of pupillary distance.


school bus yellow

school bus yellow:

An orange-yellow color, used in school buses in Canada and the United States.


school bus yellow

Of an orange-yellow color, used in school buses in Canada and the United States.

Skoolbusgeel

high-visibility yellow for automotive or traffic use


retinitis

retinitis (usually uncountable, plural retinitides)


uvea

From Medieval Latin, from Latin uva (“grape”), partial loan translation of Greek ῥαγοειδής χιτών (rhagoeidḗs khitṓn, “[covering] like a grape”), from ῥάξ (rháx, “grape”) .

(anatomy) The middle of the three concentric layers that make up the eye; it is pigmented and vascular, and comprises the choroid, the ciliary body, and the iris.

střední vrstva oční koule

the middle of the three concenctric layers that make up the eye


tangy

en-adj

tangy (comparative tangier, superlative tangiest)

tangier (comparative)
tangiest (superlative)

Christmas queen Mary Berry's aubergine five-nut roast, from her Christmas Collection, is, as the name suggests, rather more focused on the nut side of things. Breadcrumbs play second fiddle to a medley of almonds, Brazils, chestnuts, pine nuts and pistachios which, although tangy with lemon juice and garlic, is outrageously dense. A single slice of this could leave you supine in front of the Queen's speech without even the wherewithal to reach for the remote control.

2011 December 15, Felicity Cloake, “How to cook the perfect nut roast”, in Guardian:


TDD

en-noun

TDD (countable and uncountable, plural TDDs)

(countable, telecommunications) Initialism of telecommunications device for the deaf.


BO

BO (countable and uncountable, plural BOs)

(informal, euphemistic, uncountable) Initialism of body odour.


proprioception

proprioception (countable and uncountable, plural proprioceptions)

/ˌpɹəʊ.pɹi.əʊˈsɛp.ʃən/

From proprioceptor, from Latin prōprius (“one's own”) + reception. Coined by British neurophysiologist Charles Scott Sherrington in 1906.

coin

[…] it is achieved through a neuromuscular feedback system known as proprioception or kinaesthetic awareness, as well as through an auditory control system in which the ear monitors the sound and makes […]

2003, James Stark, Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy, University of Toronto Press, →ISBN, page 30:

Sometimes referred to as our sixth sense, proprioception is what helps high-level athletes take a penalty without looking at the ball, or orient themselves in the air while doing a twisting somersault.

2024 July 18, Joel Snape, “The power of proprioception: how to improve your ‘sixth sense’ – and become healthier and happier”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

The sense of the position of parts of the body, relative to other neighbouring parts of the body.

propiocepció

ízületi és izom mozgás- és helyzetérzékelés


conjunctiva

en-noun

conjunctiva (plural conjunctivas or conjunctivae)

conjunctivas (plural)
conjunctivae (plural)

From 1540s late Middle English, borrowing from Medieval Latin conjūnctīva (“serving to connect, connective”, feminine), ellipsis of membrāna conjūnctīva (“conjunctive membrane”).

ellipsis

There is a third inner eyelid, highly developed and of beautiful mechanism: this is the nictitating membrane, or "winker" (nictito, I wink), a delicate, elastic, translucent, pearly-white fold of the conjunctiva. While the other lids move vertically and have a horizontal commissure, the winker sweeps horizontally or obliquely across the ball, from the side next the beak to the opposite.

1884, Elliott Coues, “§ 4.—An Introduction to the Anatomy of Birds.”, in Key to North American Birds. […], 2nd edition, Boston, Mass.: Estes and Lauriat, →OCLC, part II (General Ornithology), page 180:

(anatomy) A clear mucous membrane that lines the inner surface of the eyelid and the exposed surface of the eyeball or sclera.


mephitic

en-adj

mephitic (comparative more mephitic, superlative most mephitic)

more mephitic (comparative)
most mephitic (superlative)

From Latin mephīticus, from mephītis; compare French méphitique.

"I could have borne the sight of his crutch," said she, "but the crutch and the nephew together really oppress me like a mephitic vapour."

1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], chapter LXI, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, pages 151–152:

It is impossible to convey, in words, any idea of the hideous phantasmagoria of shifting limbs and faces which moved through the evil-smelling twilight of this terrible prison-house. Callot might have drawn it, Dante might have suggested it, but a minute attempt to describe its horrors would but disgust. There are depths in humanity which one cannot explore, as there are mephitic caverns into which one dare not penetrate.

1874, Marcus Clarke, chapter V, in For the Term of His Natural Life:

From this crawling flapping mass of obscene reptilian life came the shocking clamor which filled the air and the mephitic, horrible, musty odor which turned us sick.

1912, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Lost World […], London; New York, N.Y.: Hodder and Stoughton, →OCLC:

More than that, perhaps the worst thing, was a sort of mephitic fog, moistureless and invisible, that came and went like an exhalation of the arid earth itself.

1996, Janette Turner Hospital, Oyster, paperback edition, Virago Press, page 3:

Foul-smelling or noxious, particularly of a gas or atmosphere.


nacarat

en-noun

nacarat (countable and uncountable, plural nacarats)

Borrowed from French nacarat, from Spanish or Portuguese nacarado, from Arabic نَقَّارَة (naqqāra, “small drum”), from نَقَرَ (naqara, “to hollow out”). Related to English nacre.

der

nacarat:


eye socket

(anatomy, ophthalmology) The bony cavity which contains the eyeball and its associated muscles, vessels, and nerves. In humans, seven bones make up each bony orbit.


extort

en-verb

extort (third-person singular simple present extorts, present participle extorting, simple past and past participle extorted)

extorts (present singular third-person)
extorting (participle present)
extorted (participle past)
extorted (past)

Borrowed from Latin extortus, past participle of extorquere (“to twist or wrench out, to extort”); from ex (“out”) + -tort, from torqueō (“twist, turn”).

(transitive and intransitive, medicine, ophthalmology) To twist outwards.


floater

From float + -er (suffix forming agent nouns).

kelluja

person who physically floats in a gas or liquid

leijuri

thing which moves from place to place, as if floating

(figurative) A person without a fixed or lasting affiliation, position, or role.

(US) A person who votes illegally in various electoral districts or polling places, either under a false voter registration or under the name of a properly registered voter who has not yet voted.

laittomasti moneen kertaan äänestävä

A thing which physically floats in a gas or liquid.

(ophthalmology) A threadlike speck in the visual field which seems to move, possibly caused by degeneration of the vitreous humour of the eye.


vitreous humour

en-noun

vitreous humour (plural vitreous humours)

(ophthalmology, British, Canada) The clear gel that fills the eyeball between the lens and the retina.


bilious

en-adj

bilious (comparative more bilious, superlative most bilious)

more bilious (comparative)
most bilious (superlative)

From French bilieux, from Latin bīliōsus (“full of bile”), from bīlis (“bile”) + -ōsus (“full of”).

Of or pertaining to something containing or consisting of bile.

Does money fail?—come to my mint—coin paper,
Till gold be at a discount, and ashamed
To show his bilious face, go purge himself,
In emulation of her vestal whiteness.

1820, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Oedipus Tyrannus; Or, Swellfoot The Tyrant: A Tragedy in Two Acts:

His complexion was pale, not of that deadly pallor which is a kind of neutral beauty, but of a bilious, yellow hue; his colorless hair was short and scarcely extended beyond the circle formed by the hat around his head, and his light blue eyes seemed destitute of any expression.

1845, Alexandre Dumas, chapter 31, in Twenty Years After:

The business-center of Schoenstrom took up one side of one block, facing the railroad. It was a row of one-story shops covered with galvanized iron, or with clapboards painted red and bilious yellow.

1920, Sinclair Lewis, chapter 3, in Main Street:

A beautiful girl once told me of a recurring nightmare in which she lay in the center of a large dark room and felt her face expand until it filled the whole room, becoming a formless mass while her eyes ran in bilious jelly up the chimney.

1952, Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man, prologue:

Perry tells me that Mr. Cole never touches malt liquor. You would not think it to look at him, but he is bilious—Mr. Cole is very bilious.

1815, Jane Austen, Emma, volume II, chapter 7:

(pathology) Suffering from real or supposed liver disorder, especially excessive secretions of bile.

sappitautinen

suffering from real or supposed liver disorder

The glorified spirit of a great statesman and philosopher dawdling, like a bilious old Nabob at a watering-place, over quarterly reviews and novels—dropping in to pay long calls—making excursions in search of the picturesque!

1830 January 30, Thomas Macaulay, “[Review of] Southey's Colloquies on Society”, in The Edinburgh Review, page 536:

The boarders, sharp-tongued bilious widows, pursued the only man in the establishment, a mild, bald creature who worked in La Samaritaine […]

Peevishly ill-humored, irritable or bad tempered; irascible.


noisome

noisome (comparative more noisome, superlative most noisome)

more noisome (comparative)
most noisome (superlative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-noisome.wav

From Middle English noysom; equivalent to noy + -some (short for annoy, from an(n)oien, enoien from Anglo-Norman anuier, from Old French enuier (French ennuyer), from Late Latin inodiare (“to make hateful”), from in- (intensive prefix) + odium (“hate”)).

Foule words is but foule wind, and foule wind is but foule breath, and foule breath is noiſome, therefore I will depart vnkist.

1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i], page 120:

And then, ſo nice, and ſo genteel; / Such Cleanlineſs from Head to Heel: / No Humours groſs, or frowzy Steams, / No noiſom Whiffs, or ſweaty Streams, / Before, behind, above, below, / Could from her taintleſs Body flow.

1731, [Jonathan Swift], “Strephon and Chloe”, in A Beautiful Young Nymph Going to Bed. […], Dublin, London: […] [William Bowyer] for J. Roberts […], published 1734, →OCLC, page 8:

(literary) Offensive to the senses; disgusting, unpleasant, nauseous, especially having an undesirable smell.


nictitating membrane

en-noun

nictitating membrane (plural nictitating membranes)

2015, Elizabeth Royte, Vultures Are Revolting. Here’s Why We Need to Save Them., National Geographic (December 2015)https://web.archive.org/web/20151213095110/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2016/01/vultures-text
As the wildebeest shrinks, the circle of sated birds lounging in the short grass expands. With bulging crops, the vultures settle their heads atop folded wings and slide their nictitating membranes shut.

A transparent protective fold of skin acting as an inner eyelid in birds, reptiles and some mammals.


pince-nez

Borrowed from French pince-nez (literally “pinch-nose”).

bor

Lord Belpher, leaning against the wall and trying to decide whether his right or left foot hurt him the more excruciatingly, became aware that a curate was standing before him, regarding him through a pair of gold-rimmed pince-nez with a disapproving and hostile expression.

1919, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter 15, in A Damsel in Distress:

Shabet took a pince-nez from his breast pocket and settled it on the bridge of his nose.

Furst, Alan 2000 Kingdom of Shadows, p170

Templeless eyeglasses that clip to the bridge of the nose.


pungent

en-adj

pungent (comparative more pungent, superlative most pungent)

more pungent (comparative)
most pungent (superlative)

Borrowed from Latin pungens (stem pungent-), present participle of pungo (“to sting”). Doublet of poignant.

I accidentally dropped the bottle of ammonia and after few seconds, a very pungent stench could be detected.

Pilton Yard, the Lynton & Barnstaple headquarters, has been taken over by a fur trading firm, and would-be trespassers to the old engine-shed are turned back by the pungent odour of heaps of carcases.

1951 February, “Notes and News: Lynton & Barnstaple Remains”, in Railway Magazine, page 136:

I can almost smell the fir scent... resinous, pungent.

1991, Paul Chadwick, Concrete: American Christmas, Dark Horse Books:

Having a strong odor that stings the nose; said especially of acidic or spicy substances.


hyperopia

en-noun

hyperopia (countable and uncountable, plural hyperopias)

(pathology) A disorder of the vision where the eye focuses images behind the retina instead of on it, so that distant objects can be seen better than near objects.


bitterness

bitterness (countable and uncountable, plural bitternesses)

From Middle English bitternesse, biternesse, from Old English biternes (“bitterness; grief”), equivalent to bitter + -ness.


mousy

en-adj

mousy (comparative mousier, superlative mousiest)

mousier (comparative)
mousiest (superlative)

From mouse + -y (forms adjectives from nouns).


delectable

en-adj

delectable (comparative more delectable, superlative most delectable)

more delectable (comparative)
most delectable (superlative)

From Middle English delectable, from Middle French délectable, from Old French delectable, from Medieval Latin delectare (“to delight”). By surface analysis, delect + -able. Piecewise doublet of delightable.

For quotations using this term, see Citations:delectable.

Highly pleasing; delightful, especially to any of the senses; delicious.


root beer

en-noun

root beer (countable and uncountable, plural root beers)

/ˈɹuːt ˌbɪə/

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-root beer.wav

The term is attested since before the lifetime of Charles Elmer Hires, but he is widely credited with popularizing it much further than it had previously been; his proprietary beverage was inspired by an earlier root tea, and he planned to sell it under that name, but he changed its name to broaden the sales appeal. For more, see Wikipedia at root beer § History.

In 1919, when Roy Allen and Frank Wright started selling their new root beer beverage to a thirsty America, national Prohibition was taking its grip on the country. Their timing couldn't have been better. No longer able to legally drink real beer, thirsty patriots had to settle for this sweet, foamy concoction derived from roots, herbs, and berries.

2002, Todd Wilbur, Top Secret Recipes, Penguin, →ISBN:

A beverage, most often a carbonated soft drink made from a combination of vanilla, cherry tree bark, licorice root, sarsaparilla root, sassafras root bark, nutmeg, anise, and molasses, among other things.


goggle

gargle (non-rhotic, father-bother merger)

From 14th century Middle English gogelen (“to roll (eyes), to look sideways”). Earlier source is unknown. The noun is attested from the 17th century. Compare Irish gog (“a nod, a slight motion”).

inh

Come and have a goggle at Fauzia’s new car!

A wide-eyed stare or affected rolling of the eye.

(in the plural) A pair of protective eyeglasses.


potent

[ˈpʰoʊ̯ʔn̩t]

[ˈpʰəʉ̯ʔn̩t]

From Middle English potent, borrowed from Latin potens, potentis (“powerful, strong, potent”), present participle of posse (“to be able”), from potis (“able, powerful, originally a lord, master”).

der

(heraldry) A heraldic fur formed by a regular tessellation of blue and white T shapes.


strawberry blonde

en-adj

strawberry blonde (comparative more strawberry blonde, superlative most strawberry blonde)

more strawberry blonde (comparative)
most strawberry blonde (superlative)

strawberry blonde:

An uncommon orange hair colour; it is characterized as a combination of pale light yellow (often called blonde) and red. Strawberry blonde hair appears blonde in dim light, but when exposed to sun or a bright light, the hair may assume a slight tinge of pink or red color.


scrumptious

scrumptious (comparative more scrumptious, superlative most scrumptious)

more scrumptious (comparative)
most scrumptious (superlative)

Probably from scrimp (“to put on short allowance, limit, straiten; to be frugal”) + -ious (suffix forming adjectives denoting the presence of a quality in any degree (usually an abundance)), possibly modelled after scrimption (“small portion, little bit, scrap”).

suffix

What a scrumptious treat!

lekker

of food: delectable, delicious — see also delectable, delicious


alabaster

en-noun

alabaster (usually uncountable, plural alabasters)

From Middle English alabastre, from Old French alabastre, from Latin alabaster (“box for perfumes or unguents”), from Ancient Greek ἀλάβαστρος (alábastros), from earlier ἀλάβαστος (alábastos, “vase without handles for storing perfumes”). This may further derive from Egyptian ꜥj-r-bꜣstjt (“vessel of the Egyptian goddess Bast”). The Latin suffix -aster is unrelated, but may have influenced the spelling of the borrowing from Ancient Greek (whence a direct loan could have been rendered as *alabastrus).

der

alabaster:

An off-white colour, like that of alabaster.


prescription

en-noun

prescription (countable and uncountable, plural prescriptions)

/pɹəˈskɹɪpʃən/

Borrowed from Middle French, from Old French prescripcion, from Latin praescriptio (“preface; pretext; something written ahead of time”), from prae- (“pre-, before”) + scribere (“to write”) + -tio (“-tion, forming nouns”).

taalregulering

the act or practice of laying down norms of language usage; an instance of this

The surgeon had written thousands of prescriptions for pain killers without proper examinations before the police raided the clinic.

medical practitioner
medical practitioner

(medicine, pharmacy, pharmacology) A written order from an authorized medical practitioner for provision of a medicine or other treatment, such as (ophthalmology) the specific lenses needed for a pair of glasses.

recetë

written order for the administration of a medicine

វេជ្ជបញ្ជា

vɨccĕəʼ bɑɑbɑñciə


mantis

From New Latin mantis, from Ancient Greek μάντις (mántis, “soothsayer”). Distant doublet of mind via Proto-Indo-European *méntis.

mantis:

A green colour, like that of many mantises.


earplug

A piece of protective gear meant to be inserted in the ear canal to protect the wearer's hearing from loud noises or the intrusion of water.


bittersweet

[ˈbɪɾɚˌswiʔt̚]

From Middle English bitterswete, biterswete, equivalent to bitter + sweet. Cognate with Saterland Frisian bitterswäit (“bittersweet”), West Frisian bittersoet (“bittersweet”), Dutch bitterzoet (“bittersweet”), German bittersüß (“bittersweet”), Danish bittersød (“bittersweet”), Swedish bittersöt (“bittersweet”).

cog

Over by the creek-bed scarlet-flamed sumac shouldered the silver-green of the willows, and orange-colored bittersweet crept through the tangle of wild plums.

1935, Bess Streeter Aldrich, chapter 43, in Spring Came on Forever:

(US) A vine, of the genus Celastrus, having small orange fruit that open to reveal red seeds.

"They had a good crop of bitter-sweets, they couldn’t grind them all"—nodding towards an orchard where some heaps of apples had been left lying ever since the ingathering.

1886 May – 1887 April, Thomas Hardy, chapter VI, in The Woodlanders […], volume I, London; New York, N.Y.: Macmillan and Co., published 1887, →OCLC, page 99:

A variety of apple with a bittersweet taste.

bittersweet:

A pinkish-orange color. Any color in between scarlet and orange.


pitch-black

en-adj

pitch-black (comparative more pitch-black, superlative most pitch-black)

more pitch-black (comparative)
most pitch-black (superlative)

From pitch (“tar”) + black. Compare West Frisian pikswart (literally “pitch-black”), Dutch pikzwart (literally “pitch-black”), German pechschwarz (literally “pitch-black”), Swedish becksvart (literally “pitch-black”), Icelandic biksvartur (literally “pitch-black”).


brunet

From French brunet. Compare also Middle English brunet, burnet (“brown”), from Old French brunet, which is the same word.

(rare) Of a man or boy, having brown or dark brown hair.


verdigris

en-noun

verdigris (countable and uncountable, plural verdigrises)

From Middle English vertegrez, from Old French verte grez (literally “acidic green”), an alteration of older verte de Grece (literally “green of Greece”). The modern French writing of this word is vert-de-gris (literally “green of gray”).

der

(organic chemistry, dated) Copper acetate.


farsightedness

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-farsightedness.wav

The quality of being considerate about what might happen in the future.


jet-black

en-adj

jet-black (comparative more jet-black, superlative most jet-black)

more jet-black (comparative)
most jet-black (superlative)

Year after year unto her feet, / She lying on her couch alone, / Across the purpled coverlet, / The maiden's jet-black hair has grown, […]

1842, Alfred Tennyson, “The Day-Dream. The Sleeping Palace.”, in Poems. […], volume II, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 152:


deodorisation

en-noun

deodorisation (countable and uncountable, plural deodorisations)

Non-Oxford British English standard spelling of deodorization.


listening

From Middle English listnynge, lustninde, from Old English hlysnende, equivalent to listen + -ing.

He could hear better when he used his listening device.

Of something that is used in order to hear or to improve the ability to hear.

kuulo-

of something that is used in order to hear


listening

From Middle English listnynge, lustnynge, lystenynge, equivalent to listen + -ing.

You can improve your listening well by watching English-language films.

Skill or ability of perceiving spoken language.


gridelin

From French gris de lin (“grey of flax”).

Having a dusky color between white and red; gray-violet.


gridelin

gridelin (usually uncountable, plural gridelins)

gridelin:

A dusky color between white and red; gray-violet.


eyeless

From Middle English eyles, eieles, equivalent to eye + -less. Compare West Frisian eachleas (“eyeless”), Dutch oogloos (“eyeless”), German augenlos (“eyeless”), Swedish ögalös (“eyeless”), Icelandic augnalaus (“eyeless”).

Huge eyeless crabs roam the ocean floor around hydrothermal vents.

I held out my hand, and the horrible, soft-spoken, eyeless creature gripped it in a moment like a vise. I was so much startled that I struggled to withdraw; but the blind man pulled me close up to him with a single action of his arm.

1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, London; Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883, →OCLC:

eyeless needle

(uncommon, of tools or objects, especially suturing needles) Having no eye: having no hole.


amblyopia

amblyopia (countable and uncountable, plural amblyopias)

/æmblɪˈəʊpɪə/

Dimness or blurring of the eyesight due to a fault in transmission of signals to the brain from an otherwise healthy eye.


mahogany

mahogany (countable and uncountable, plural mahoganies)

→ German: Mahagoni

A word of unknown origin concocted in either English or Middle Dutch from one or more exotic phytonyms and common European words.

bastard mahogany

Eucalyptus botryoides or Matayba apetala

Brazilian mahogany

Cariniana legalis; Plathymenia foliolosa, Plathymenia reticulata

A very neat old woman, still in her good outdoor coat and best beehive hat, was sitting at a polished mahogany table on whose surface there were several scored scratches so deep that a triangular piece of the veneer had come cleanly away[…].

1963, Margery Allingham, “Foreword”, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:

(uncountable) The valuable wood of any of various tropical American evergreen trees, of the genus Swietenia, mostly used to make furniture.

William Murdoch […] produced a bottle of port; but I chose mahogany (two parts gin and one part treacle, which Lord Eliot made us at Sir Joshua Reynolds's as a Cornish liquor, but it seems they make it also with brandy, and often add porter to it).

1792, James Boswell, in Danziger & Brady (eds.), Boswell: The Great Biographer (Journals 1789–1795), Yale 1989, p. 178

(regional) A Cornish drink made from gin and treacle.

Better she, my dear, than a black Mrs. Sedley, and a dozen of mahogany grandchildren.

1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, chapter 6, in Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC:

mahogany:

A reddish-brown color, like that of mahogany wood.


mahogany

en-adj

mahogany (comparative more mahogany, superlative most mahogany)

more mahogany (comparative)
most mahogany (superlative)

Having the colour of mahogany; dark reddish-brown.


teary

teary (comparative tearier, superlative teariest)

tearier (comparative)
teariest (superlative)

From Middle English tery; equivalent to tear + -y.

No wonder Ryan was teary; he missed his parents.

Of a person, having eyes filled with tears; inclined to cry.


terracotta

en-noun

terracotta (usually uncountable, plural terracottas)

/ˌtɛɹ.əˈkɒt.ə/

/ˌtɛɹ.əˈkɑt.ə/

Borrowed from Italian terra (“earth”) + cotta (“baked”).

terracotta:

A reddish brown colour, like that of terra cotta.


sangria

sangria (countable and uncountable, plural sangrias)

Borrowed from Spanish sangría, from sangre (“blood”) + -ía.

Just a perfect day / Drink sangria in the park

1972, Lou Reed (lyrics and music), “Perfect Day”, in Transformer:

Sipping a sangria with a girl named Julia / Hot Jamaican sand beneath our feet

1978, “Last Summer”, in Blondes Have More Fun, performed by Rod Stewart:

A cold drink, originating in Spain, consisting of red or white wine, brandy or sherry, fruit juice, sugar and soda water and garnished with orange and other fruit.

سانجريا

Spanish wine drink with fruit, sugar and soda


jonquil

/ˈd͡ʒɑŋkwəl/

/ˈd͡ʒɒŋkwəl/

Borrowed from French jonquille, itself a borrowing from Spanish junquillo.

A fragrant bulb flower (Narcissus jonquilla), a species of daffodil.


bloodshot

en-adj

bloodshot (comparative more bloodshot, superlative most bloodshot)

more bloodshot (comparative)
most bloodshot (superlative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-bloodshot.wav

She said she was perfectly fine but I could tell she was tired; her eyes were all bloodshot.

(of the eyes) Reddened and inflamed because of congested blood vessels.


bleen

Blend of blue + green; coined by American philosopher Nelson Goodman in 1955 to illustrate concepts in the philosophy of science

coinage

(philosophy) Of an object, blue when first observed before a specified time or green when first observed after that time.

bert

of an object blue that is first blue, then green


dyestuff

en-noun

dyestuff (countable and uncountable, plural dyestuffs)

Any soluble pigment used for dyeing the hair, fabric, etc.


colly

From Middle English *colien, variant of *colwen (attested in Middle English colwed and colwinge), from Old English *colgian. More at collow.

besmeared with soot , colly

1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC:


eye shadow

eye shadow (countable and uncountable, plural eye shadows)

Makeup that is applied to the eyelids and below the eyes to give a darker complexion there.


eyeliner

eyeliner (countable and uncountable, plural eyeliners)

Do you need to wear eyeliner? As with any makeup step, eyeliner is completely optional. From an artistic perspective, if you are wearing eyeshadow, I almost always recommend wearing eyeliner, unless your eyelids and eyelashes are obscured by the eyebrow area. Eyeliner is a basic part of an eye-makeup design because it shapes and defines the eyes and makes the eyelashes look thicker.

2004, Paula Begoun, The Complete Beauty Bible: The Ultimate Guide to Smart Beauty, Rodale Inc., →ISBN, page 419:

Makeup used to outline the eye, generally applied along or close to the lashline.