colour

colour
\ \ [13] The Old English words for ‘colour’ were hīwhue’ and blēo, but from the 13th century onwards they were gradually replaced by Old French colour. This came from Latin color, which appears to have come ultimately from an Indo-European base *kel- ‘hide’ (source also of apocalypse, cell, clandestine, conceal, and occult). This suggests that its original underlying meaning was ‘outward appearance, hiding what is inside’, a supposition supported by the long history of such senses of English colour as ‘outward (deceptive) appearance’ and ‘(specious) plausibility’ (as in ‘lend colour to a notion’).
\ \ Cf.APOCALYPSE, CELL, CONCEAL, HELL, OCCULT

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • colour up — To blush, flush • • • Main Entry: ↑colour * * * ˌcolour ˈup [intransitive] [present tense I/you/we/they colour up he/she/it colours up …   Useful english dictionary

  • colour — is the most prominent example of a secondary quality (see primary/secondary qualities ). Philosophical opinion has always been divided over whether to allocate colour (and smell, taste, and sound) to the physical world, or to regard them as… …   Philosophy dictionary

  • colour — In BrE the customary spellings of words related to colour are colourable (= specious, counterfeit), colourant (= colouring substance), colourful, colourist (= a painter in colour), and colourless, but coloration (= a colour scheme), colorific (=… …   Modern English usage

  • Colour It In — Studio album by The Maccabees Released April 16, 2007 (Download) …   Wikipedia

  • Colour It In — Album par The Maccabees Sortie 14 mai 2007 (GB) Durée 37:34 Genre Indie, Rock Producteur Stephen Street …   Wikipédia en Français

  • colour — (US color) ► NOUN 1) the property possessed by an object of producing different sensations on the eye as a result of the way it reflects or emits light. 2) one, or any mixture, of the constituents into which light can be separated in a spectrum… …   English terms dictionary

  • colour — (Brit.) col·our || kÊŒlÉ™ v. add color, distort, falsify (also color) n. shade, tint, hue (also color) adj. using or having colour (also color) …   English contemporary dictionary

  • Colour — Col our, n. See {Color}. [Brit.] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • colour — chiefly Brit var of COLOR …   Medical dictionary

  • colour — British English spelling of COLOR (Cf. color) (q.v.); for ending see OR (Cf. or). Related: Coloured; colouring; colourful; colours …   Etymology dictionary

  • colour — [kul′ər] n., vt., vi. Brit. sp. of COLOR …   English World dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”