Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense dyes, present participle dyeing, past tense, past participle dyed
1. verb
If you dye something such as hair or cloth, you change its colour by soaking it in a special liquid.
The women prepared, spun and dyed the wool. [VERB noun]
She had dyed black hair. [VERB-ed]
Synonyms: colour, stain, tint, shade More Synonyms of dye
2. variable noun
Dye is a substance made from plants or chemicals which is mixed into a liquid and used to change the colour of something such as cloth or hair.
...bottles of hair dye.
Synonyms: colouring, colour, pigment, wash More Synonyms of dye
dye in British English
(daɪ)
noun
1.
a staining or colouring substance, such as a natural or synthetic pigment
2.
a liquid that contains a colouring material and can be used to stain fabrics, skins, etc
3.
the colour or shade produced by dyeing
verbWord forms: dyes, dyeing or dyed
4. (transitive)
to impart a colour or stain to (something, such as fabric or hair) by or as if by the application of a dye
Derived forms
dyable (ˈdyable) or dyeable (ˈdyeable)
adjective
dyer (ˈdyer)
noun
Word origin
Old English dēagian, from dēag a dye; related to Old High German tugōn to change, Lettish dūkans dark
dye in American English
(daɪ)
noun
1.
color produced in a substance by saturating it with a coloring agent; tint; hue
2.
any substance used to give color to fabric, hair, etc.; coloring matter or a solution containing it
verb transitiveWord forms: dyed or ˈdyeing
3.
to color with or as with a dye
verb intransitive
4.
to take on color in dyeing
Idioms:
of (the) deepest dye
Derived forms
dyer (ˈdyer)
noun
Word origin
ME deie < OE deag, akin to OHG tougal, dark, secret < IE *dhwek-, dark color, secret < base *dheu-: see dull
Examples of 'dye' in a sentence
dye
Your team is the worst in the country and you dye your hair?
The Sun (2016)
It required him to have his blond hair dyed dark brown.
The Sun (2017)
If you want to dye your hair, go for it.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
I dyed my hair bright blue.
The Sun (2017)
When I dyed my hair, my mother refused to talk to me for a week.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Nor does she address why ours is a world in which women with grey hair dye it, and men with grey hair don't.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
I loved it when I dyed my hair pink.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
They bought whitewash and mixed it with natural dyes and pigments.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
It took weeks to turn out a single batch of dyed fabric.
Judith Flanders Consuming Passions: Leisure and Pleasure in Victorian Britain (2006)
The flowers have been used to make a yellow dye.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
His interest in plants that produce dyes and in pigments for painting lasted throughout his life.
Oliver Morton Eating the Sun: How Plants Power the Planet (2007)
Who are we kidding when we dye our hair?
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
The sides would be totally white without the dye job.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The second stage tomorrow will pass fields in which sheep have had their wool dyed pink.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Who dyes their hair one colour when you can dye it eight colours?
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Special dye may be inserted into arteries and veins to show blood flow.
The Sun (2014)
The natural dye in tea encourages the skin to tan more quickly.
Guyton, Anita The Natural Beauty Book - cruelty-free cosmetics to make at home (1991)
The former neuroscience student had dyed his hair red and wore a gas mask and body armour.
The Sun (2015)
Say hello to the second most famous platinum dye job on the planet.
The Sun (2015)
It does this by using a special dye that changes colour in proportion to the amount of cholesterol.
The Sun (2015)
The neat bob of hair has been dyed a fashionable shade of EastEnders blonde.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The first process is to dye the fabric so it matches the client's outfit.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
She didn't know how to make nettle dye.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
First the technician threaded my brows, then she dyed them one shade darker than my natural tone.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
In fact, she looked more interested in daydreaming about the colour she might dye her hair next.
The Sun (2008)
The plants that produce natural indigo are undergoing something of a revival, as an alternative to the widely used synthetic dyes that rely on petrochemicals.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Again, a fabric is first dyed and stiffened, then cut into petals.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
In colonial times, before synthetic dyes were invented, indigo made vast fortunes for its growers and traders.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
In other languages
dye
British English: dye /daɪ/ NOUN
Dye is a substance which is used to dye something.
...bottles of hair dye.
American English: dye
Arabic: صِبْغَة
Brazilian Portuguese: tintura
Chinese: 染料
Croatian: boja
Czech: barva barvivo
Danish: farve
Dutch: verf
European Spanish: tinte
Finnish: väriaine
French: teinture
German: Farbstoff
Greek: βαφή
Italian: tintura
Japanese: 染料
Korean: 염료
Norwegian: fargestoff
Polish: barwnik
European Portuguese: tinta
Romanian: vopsea
Russian: краска
Latin American Spanish: tinte
Swedish: färgmedel
Thai: สีย้อม
Turkish: boya giysi
Ukrainian: фарба
Vietnamese: thuốc nhuộm
British English: dye /daɪ/ VERB
If you dye something, you change its colour by soaking it in a special liquid.
The women prepared, spun and dyed the wool.
American English: dye
Arabic: يَصْبِغُ
Brazilian Portuguese: tingir
Chinese: 染
Croatian: bojati
Czech: barvit vlasy apod.
Danish: farve
Dutch: verven
European Spanish: teñir
Finnish: värjätä
French: teindre
German: färben
Greek: βάφω
Italian: tingere
Japanese: 染める
Korean: 염색하다
Norwegian: farge
Polish: pofarbować
European Portuguese: tingir
Romanian: a vopsi
Russian: красить
Latin American Spanish: teñir
Swedish: färga
Thai: ย้อม
Turkish: boyamak
Ukrainian: фарбувати
Vietnamese: nhuộm
All related terms of 'dye'
azo dye
any of a class of artificial dyes that contain the azo group. They are usually red, brown , or yellow and are obtained from aromatic amines
red dye
any of several artificial red pigments added to cosmetics or food: dyes number two and number four are banned by the FDA as possible carcinogenic additives
tie-dye
If a piece of cloth or a garment is tie-dyed , it is tied in knots and then put into dye, so that some parts become more deeply coloured than others.
vat dye
a dye , such as indigo , that is applied by first reducing it to its leuco base, which is soluble in alkali , and then regenerating the insoluble dye by oxidation in the fibres of the material
acid dye
a dye in which the chromophore is part of a negative ion usually applied from an acidic solution
Congo dye
any of certain azo dyes , derived mainly from benzidine
aniline dye
any synthetic dye originally made from raw materials, such as aniline , obtained from coal tar
direct dye
any of a number of dyes that can be applied without the use of a mordant . They are usually azo dyes applied to cotton or rayon from a liquid bath containing an electrolyte such as sodium sulphate
dye transfer
a photographic printing method by which a full-color image is produced by the printing of separate cyan , magenta , and yellow images from individual gelatin relief matrices
xanthene dye
any of various dyes that contain the xanthene ring structure in their molecules
tie-and-dye
a method of dyeing textiles to produce patterns by tying sections of the cloth together so that they will not absorb the dye
Tyrian purple
a deep purple dye obtained from molluscs of the genus Murex and highly prized in antiquity
of (the) deepest dye
of the most marked , esp. the worst , sort
Chinese translation of 'dye'
dye
(daɪ)
n(c/u)
(for hair, cloth) 染料 (rǎnliào) (种(種), zhǒng)
vt
染色 (rǎnsè)
to dye sth red/black把某物染成红(紅)色/黑色 (bǎ mǒuwù rǎnchéng hóngsè/hēisè)
(noun)
Definition
the colour produced by dyeing
bottles of hair dye
Synonyms
colouring
colour
the latest range of lip and eye colours
pigment
a wide range of natural pigments
wash
He painted a wash of colour over the entire surface.
stain
Give each surface two coats of stain.
tint
You've had a tint on your hair.
tinge
His skin had an unhealthy greyish tinge.
colorant
(verb)
Definition
to colour (hair or fabric) by applying a dye
The man spun and dyed the wool.
Synonyms
colour
Saffron can be used to colour the rice yellow.
stain
a technique biologists use to stain proteins
tint
Eyebrows can be tinted with the same dye.
shade
tinge
The living room was tinged yellow by the sunlight.
pigment
tincture
colour-wash
Additional synonyms
in the sense of pigment
Definition
any substance which gives colour to paint or dye
a wide range of natural pigments
Synonyms
colour,
colouring,
paint,
stain,
dye,
tint,
tincture,
colouring matter,
colorant,
dyestuff
in the sense of stain
Definition
a liquid used to penetrate the surface of a material, such as wood, and colour it without covering up the surface or grain