the quality of an object or substance with respect to light reflected by the object, usually determined visually by measurement of hue, saturation, and brightness of the reflected light; saturation or chroma; hue.
the natural appearance of the skin, especially of the face; complexion: She has a lovely color.
a ruddy complexion: The wind and sun had given color to the sailor's face.
a blush: His remarks brought the color to her face.
vivid or distinctive quality, as of a literary work: Melville's description of a whaling voyage is full of color.
details in description, customs, speech, habits, etc., of a place or period: The novel takes place in New Orleans and contains much local color.
something that is used for coloring; pigment; paint; tint; dye.
background information, as anecdotes about players or competitors or analyses of plays, strategy, or performance, given by a sportscaster to heighten interest in a sportscast.
colors,
any distinctive color or combination or pattern of colors, especially of a badge, ribbon, uniform, or the like, worn or displayed as a symbol of or to identify allegiance to, membership in, or sponsorship by a school, group, or organization.
nature, viewpoint, or attitude; character; personality: His behavior in a crisis revealed his true colors.
a flag, ensign, etc., particularly the national flag.
U.S. Navy.the ceremony of hoisting the national flag at 8 a.m. and of lowering it at sunset.
skin complexion as a characteristic of a particular people or ethnic group, especially when other than white: one's religion and color;a person of color;people of color;a man of color;alumni of color;children of color.
outward appearance or aspect; guise or show: It was a lie, but it had the color of the truth.
a pretext: She did it under the color of doing a good deed.
Painting. the general use or effect of the pigments in a picture.
Phonetics. timbre.
Chiefly Law. an apparent or prima facie right or ground: to hold possession under color of title.
Music. tone color.
a trace or particle of valuable mineral, especially gold, as shown by washing auriferous gravel.
Physics. any of the labels red, green, or blue that designate the three states in which quarks are expected to exist, or any of the corresponding labels for antiquark states.Compare quantum chromodynamics, quark model.
Printing. the amount of ink used.
Heraldry. a tincture other than a fur or metal, usually including gules, azure, vert, sable, and purpure.
adjective
involving, utilizing, yielding, or possessing color: a color TV.
verb (used with object)
to give or apply color to; tinge; paint; dye: She colored her hair dark red.
to cause to appear different from the reality: In order to influence the jury, he colored his account of what had happened.
to give a special character or distinguishing quality to: His personal feelings color his writing.
verb (used without object)
to take on or change color: The ocean colored at dawn.
to flush; blush: He colored when confronted with the incriminating evidence.
Idioms for color
call to the colors, to summon for service in the armed forces: Thousands are being called to the colors.
change color,
to blush as from embarrassment.
to turn pale, as from fear: When he saw the size of his opponent, he changed color.
with flying colors. flying colors (def. 2).
Also especially British, col·our .
Origin of color
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English col(o)ur, from Anglo-French (French couleur ), from Latin colōr- (stem of color ) “hue”
SYNONYMS FOR color
23 bias, prejudice.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR color ON THESAURUS.COM
usage note for color
See -or1.
usage note for color
See black.
OTHER WORDS FROM color
col·or·er,nouno·ver·col·or,verbpre·col·or,noun,verbre·col·or,verb (used with object)
Available in 6 different sizes depending upon your project needs, they also come in a few different binder colors to suit your personal preferences.
Notable notebooks for writing and drawing|PopSci Commerce Team|September 17, 2020|Popular Science
In terms of design, Apple made a few tweaks to the materials and colors available this year.
Apple Watch Series 6 first impressions: A stretchy addition looks great|Aaron Pressman|September 17, 2020|Fortune
The pencils also have a soft core making the colors ideal for shading and layering.
Excellent pencils for school, work, and beyond|PopSci Commerce Team|September 16, 2020|Popular Science
That may change in the future, as bringing more people of color into leadership tracks has “been the topic in the boardroom for the last several months,” Hanson says.
‘It has to have an impact’: What Citi’s new CEO means for other women on Wall Street|Maria Aspan|September 16, 2020|Fortune
The tablet comes in a variety of color options, including silver, space gray, rose gold, green, and sky blue finishes.
Everything announced at Apple’s ‘Time Flies’ event today|rhhackettfortune|September 15, 2020|Fortune
Similarly, a recent NPR report covered the challenges many police departments are having recruiting officers of color.
How to Solve the Policing Crisis|Keli Goff|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Lynch kept gazing straight ahead as De Blasio joined Bratton at the other end of the color guard.
Funeral Protest Is Too Much for NYPD Union Boss|Michael Daly|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The losers have always been children in poverty, children of color, and children with disabilities.
The ‘No Child’ Rewrite Threatens Your Kids’ Future|Jonah Edelman|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
She says that every film she makes, she has to hit someone—The Color Purple, The Butler, and Selma.
Ava DuVernay on ‘Selma,’ the Racist Sony Emails, and Making Golden Globes History|Marlow Stern|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Many of those are people of color who are American citizens.
The Progressive Case Against Birthright Citizenship|Keli Goff|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
To the experienced eye the color of the egg indicates that it has died as it takes on a sort of pinkish or darkish tint.
Ducks and Geese|Harry M. Lamon
The color of the ink used by the forger was not the same as that in the signature.
The Scarlet Feather|Houghton Townley
The color of the feathers does not seem to affect the quality of the flesh or their character for laying.
Domestic Animals|Richard L. Allen
There was no color to fade from her face, but the light died from her eyes, and the word faltered on her lips.
Brought Home|Hesba Stretton
"The green is emblematic; it is the color of memory," said Mr. Homer.
The sensation produced by the effect of light waves striking the retina of the eye. The color of something depends mainly on which wavelengths of light it emits, reflects, or transmits.
Color charge. See also hadron.
A Closer Look
When beams of colored light are mixed, or added, their wavelengths combine to form other colors. All spectral colors can be formed by mixing wavelengths corresponding to the additive primaries red, green, and blue. When two of the additive primaries are mixed in equal proportion, they form the complement of the third. Thus cyan (a mixture of green and blue) is the complement of red; magenta (a mixture of blue and red) is the complement of green; and yellow (a mixture of red and green) is the complement of blue. Mixing the three additive primaries in equal proportions reconstitutes white light. When light passes through a color filter, certain wavelengths are absorbed, or subtracted, while others are transmitted. The subtractive primaries cyan, magenta, and yellow can be combined using overlapping filters to form all other colors. When two of the subtractive primaries are combined in equal proportion, they form the additive primary whose wavelength they share. Thus overlapping filters of cyan (blue and green) and magenta (blue and red) filter out all wavelengths except blue; magenta (blue and red) and yellow (red and green) transmit only red; and yellow (red and green) and cyan (blue and green) transmit only green. Combining all three subtractive primaries in equal proportions filters out all wavelengths, producing black. Light striking a colored surface behaves similarly to light passing through a filter, with certain wavelengths being absorbed and others reflected. Pigments are combined to form different colors by a process of subtractive absorption of various wavelengths.