I. pur ‧ ple 1 /ˈpɜːp ə l $ ˈpɜːr-/ BrE AmE noun [uncountable]
[ Date: 900-1000 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: purpura , from Greek porphyra type of shellfish from which purple coloring was obtained ]
a dark colour that is a mixture of red and blue
II. purple 2 BrE AmE adjective
1 . having a dark colour that is a mixture of red and blue
2 . purple with rage/purple in the face etc with a face that is dark red, caused by anger:
His face turned purple with rage.
3 . purple patch a time when you are very successful – used especially in news reports:
Steve’s purple patch continued with a second victory on Tuesday.
4 . purple prose/passage writing that uses difficult or unusual words – used in order to show disapproval