dye

¹dye

noun \ˈdī\

Definition of DYE

1

: color from dyeing

2

: a soluble or insoluble coloring matter

Examples of DYE

1. <soaked the fabric in blue dye>

Origin of DYE

Middle English dehe, from Old English dēah, dēag

First Known Use: before 12th century

Related to DYE

Synonyms

color, colorant, coloring, pigment, dyestuff, stain

Related Words

tint, toner; cast, hue, shade, tinge

Other Paints and Dyes Terms

bloom, craze, medium, size, vehicle

Rhymes with DYE

ay, aye, bi, Bligh, buy, by, bye, chai, chi, cry, die, dry, eye, fie, fly, fry, guy, hie, high, Huai, i, I, lie, lye, my, nigh, phi, pi, pie, ply, pry, psi, rye, scythe, shy, sigh, sky, Skye, sly, spry, spy, sty, Tai, Thai, thigh, thy, tie, try, vie, why, wry, wye, xi, Y

²dye

verb

dyeddye·ing

Definition of DYE

transitive verb

1

: to impart a new and often permanent color to especially by impregnating with a dye

2

: to impart (a color) by dyeing

intransitive verb

: to take up or impart color in dyeing

— dye·abil·i·ty \ˌdī-ə-ˈbi-lə-tē\ noun

— dye·able \ˈdī-ə-bəl\ adjective

— dy·er \ˈdī(-ə)r\ noun

Examples of DYE

1. She had been dyeing her hair for years.
2. The fabric is bleached, dyed, and then washed.

First Known Use of DYE

before 12th century

Related to DYE

Synonyms

bepaint [archaic], color, paint, pigment, stain, tincture, tinge, tint

Antonyms

decolorize

Related Words

brighten, lighten; darken, embrown, tone (down); checker, dapple, daub, fleck, marble, mottle, pattern, polychrome, speck, speckle, streak, striate, stripe, variegate

Near Antonyms

blanch, bleach, whiten

Other Paints and Dyes Terms

bloom, craze, medium, size, vehicle

dye

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Any of a class of intensely coloured complex organic compounds used to colour textiles, leather, paper, and other materials. Dyes known to the ancients came from plants such as indigo and madder (see madder family) or from the shells of mollusks; today most dyes are made from coal tar and petrochemicals. The chemical structure of dyes is relatively easy to modify, so many new colours and types of dyes have been synthesized. Dye molecules are deposited from solution onto materials in such a way that they cannot be removed by the original solvent. Fibre-reactive dyes form a covalent bond with the fibre. Other dyes require prior application of a mordant, an inorganic material that causes the dye to precipitate as an insoluble salt. Another technique is vat dyeing, in which a soluble colourless compound is absorbed by the fibres, then oxidized (see oxidation-reduction) to the insoluble coloured compound, making it remarkably resistant to the fading effects of washing, light, and chemicals. See also azo dye.