puce
/pjuːs
/adjective
Of a dark red or purple-brown colour: his face was puce with rage and frustration...
- She stood impassively on the shoreline in a very unflattering puce bikini that was five sizes too small for her.
- An oversized text with a puce cover, Blast's title was emblazoned diagonally across the cover in three-inch tall, bold, black type.
- Mrs. Mahathy's face turned a beautiful puce color and her finger rose shakily towards the door.
noun [mass noun]
A dark red or purple-brown colour.Admittedly there was no hint of green, or purple, or grey, or puce, or taupe, or beige, or whatever the hell other parties there are....
- The events occurring when they were reduced to 13 caused Gloucester's head coach to turn a darker shade of puce.
- Some of the parliamentarians turned puce with passion in their speeches, but they didn't seem to be hurling insults at each other or constantly trying to put each other down.
Origin
Late 18th century: from French, literally 'flea(-colour)', from Latin pulex, pulic-.
This colour term is from a French word for ‘flea’.
Rhymes
- private member's bill
- private motoring
- private motorist
- privateness
- private notice question
- private nuisance
- private number
- private parts
- private patient
- private placement
- private practice
- private press
- private property
- private residence
- private road
- private room
- private school
- private schoolmaster
- private secretary
- private secretaryship
- private sector
- private service
- private ship of war
- private soldier
- private trade