[col.or.a.tion] n (1617) 1 a: the state of being colored "the dark ~ of his skin" b: use or choice of colors (as by an artist) c: arrangement of colors "the ~ of a butterfly's wing"
2. a: characteristic quality "the newspapers ... took on the former ~ of the magazine --L. B. Seltzer" b: aspect suggesting an attitude: persuasion "the chameleon talent for taking on the intellectual ~ of whatever idea he happened to fasten onto --Budd Schulberg"
3: subtle variation of intensity or quality of tone "a wide range of ~ from the orchestra"