(~s, ~ing, ~ed)
Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
Note: in AM, use 'color'
1.
The ~ of something is the appearance that it has as a result of the way in which it reflects light. Red, blue, and green are ~s.
‘What ~ is the car?’—‘Red.’...
Her silk dress was sky-blue, the ~ of her eyes...
Judi’s favourite ~ is pink...
The badges come in twenty different ~s and shapes.
N-COUNT: usu with supp
2.
A ~ is a substance you use to give something a particular ~. Dyes and make-up are sometimes referred to as ~s.
...The Body Shop Herbal Hair Colour...
It is better to avoid all food ~s.
...the latest lip and eye ~s.
N-VAR
3.
If you ~ something, you use something such as dyes or paint to change its ~.
Many women begin ~ing their hair in their mid-30s...
We’d been making cakes and ~ing the posters...
The petals can be cooked with rice to ~ it yellow.
VERB: V n, V n, V n ~
~ing
They could not afford to spoil those maps by careless ~ing.
N-UNCOUNT
4.
If someone ~s, their face becomes redder than it normally is, usually because they are embarrassed.
Andrew couldn’t help noticing that she ~ed slightly.
= blush
VERB: V
5.
Someone’s ~ is the ~ of their skin. People often use ~ in this way to refer to a person’s race.
I don’t care what ~ she is...
He acknowledged that Mr Taylor’s ~ and ethnic origins were utterly irrelevant in the circumstances.
N-COUNT: usu sing, oft poss N politeness
6.
A ~ television, photograph, or picture is one that shows things in all their ~s, and not just in black, white, and grey.
In Japan 99 per cent of all households now have a ~ television set.
ADJ: usu ADJ n
7.
Colour is a quality that makes something especially interesting or exciting.
She had resumed the travel necessary to add depth and ~ to her novels.
N-UNCOUNT
see also local ~
8.
If something ~s your opinion, it affects the way that you think about something.
The attitude of the parents toward the usefulness of what is learned must ~ the way children approach school.
= affect
VERB: V n
9.
A country’s national ~s are the ~s of its national flag.
The Opera House is decorated with the Hungarian national ~s: green, red and white.
N-PLURAL
10.
People sometimes refer to the flag of a particular part of an army, navy, or air force, or the flag of a particular country as its ~s.
Troops raised the country’s colors in a special ceremony.
...the battalion’s ~s.
N-PLURAL: poss N
11.
A sports team’s ~s are the ~s of the clothes they wear when they play.
I was wearing the team’s ~s.
N-PLURAL
12.
see also ~ed , ~ing
13.
If you pass a test with flying ~s, you have done very well in the test.
So far McAllister seemed to have passed all the tests with flying colors.
PHRASE: PHR after v
14.
If a film or television programme is in ~, it has been made so that you see the picture in all its ~s, and not just in black, white, or grey.
Was he going to show the film? Was it in ~?...
PHRASE: v-link PHR, PHR after v
15.
People of ~ are people who belong to a race with dark skins.
Black communities spoke up to defend the rights of all people of color.
PHRASE: n PHR politeness
16.
If you see someone in their true ~s or if they show their true ~s, you realize what they are really like.
The children are seeing him in his true ~s for the first time now...
Here, the organization has had time to show its true ~s, to show its inefficiency and its bungling.
PHRASE: PHR after v