26984 words

colour

15 definitions • 32 examples
1
red, blue, green, yellow, etc.:

Examples:

What's your favourite colour?
She wears a lot of bright colours.
What colour are your eyes?
in a colour Does the shirt come in any other colour?
I like rich jewel colours, such as purple, blue, and green.
in colour Are the photos in colour or black and white?
2
the pleasant effect of a bright colour or of a lot of colours together:

Examples:

I think we need a bit of colour in this room.
Red and yellow peppers give a little colour to the sauce.
ablaze with colour literary The whole garden was ablaze with colour (= full of different bright colours).
a riot of colour literary The whole garden was a riot of colour (= full of different bright colours).
3
a substance, such as a paint or dye, that you add to something to give it a particular colour:

Examples:

colour runs I put my new green shirt in a hot wash and the colour ran (= the colour came out of the material).
4
a pink colour in someone's face, often showing good health or showing feelings such as embarrassment or excitement:

Examples:

colour drains from I watched the colour drain from her face as she heard the news.
She has a high colour (= the natural colour of her face is red).
5
to cause someone who has been ill to look more healthy, especially by doing exercise:

Examples:

That walk has put some colour in your cheeks.
6

Examples:

We added your story for a bit of local colour.
Michael was there so that added a bit of colour to the evening's proceedings.
7
the natural colour of a person's skin which shows which race they belong to:

Examples:

She felt she had not been given the job because of her colour.
There should be no discrimination on the grounds of colour.
8
used to describe people who do not consider themselves to be white:

Examples:

a literary prize to encourage writers of colour
We value the contributions made by our colleagues of colour.
9
(at school, college, or university) an honour given to people who have been chosen for a sports team, often represented by a special symbol on a shirt or tie:

Examples:

colours for She was awarded her colours for hockey/her hockey colours at the end of term.
10
11
the colours chosen by a team, university, or other group of people, for people to wear when they want to show they belong to or support that group:

Examples:

club colours He wanted to be buried in red and white, his club colours (= the colours of his football team).
Gowns are trimmed with purple and gold, the university colours.
He says that just because young men are wearing colours, it does not mean they are part of a gang.
12
Colour television, photography, or printing shows things in all their colours, not just in black and white.
13
to become a particular colour, or to make something a particular colour:

Examples:

Do you think he colours his hair?
He drew a heart and coloured it red.
Fry the onions till they start to colour.
14
to become red in the face because you are embarrassed
15
If something colours your opinion of something, it influences your opinion in a negative way:

Examples:

I'm sure my views on marriage are coloured by my parents' divorce.
I'm trying not to let my judgment be coloured by that one incident.

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