green

1 of 3

adjective

ˈgrēn 

1

: of the color green

2

a

: covered by green growth or foliage

green fields

b

: consisting of green plants and usually edible herbage

a green salad

c

of winter : mild, clement

3

a

: envious sense 1

—used especially in the phrase green with envy

b

: marked by a pale, sickly, or nauseated appearance

4

: not ripened or matured

green peaches

5

a

: deficient in training, knowledge, or experience

green recruits

b

: deficient in sophistication and savoir faire : naive

was green and credulous

c

: not fully qualified for or experienced in a particular function

6

: youthful, vigorous

7

: fresh, new

8

a

often capitalized : relating to or being an environmentalist political movement

b

: concerned with or supporting environmentalism

green consumers who practice recycling

c

: tending to preserve environmental quality (as by being recyclable, biodegradable, or nonpolluting)

greener energy solutions

9

: pleasantly alluring

10

a

: not fully processed or treated: such as

(1)

: freshly sawed

green lumber

(2)

: not aged

green liquor

(3)

: not dressed or tanned

green hides

b

: not in condition for a particular use

greenish

ˈgrē-nish 

adjective

greenishness noun

greenly adverb

greenness

ˈgrē(n)-nəs 

noun

green

2 of 3

noun

plural greens

1

: a color whose hue is somewhat less yellow than that of growing fresh grass or of the emerald or is that of the part of the spectrum lying between blue and yellow

2

: something of a green color

3

: green vegetation: such as

a greens plural

(1)

: leafy herbs (such as spinach, dandelions, or Swiss chard) that are cooked as a vegetable

(2)

: green vegetables

b

greens plural : leafy parts of plants for use as decoration

4

: an area consisting of or resembling grass: such as

a

: a usually grassy park or common in the center of a town or village

Mashpee, Massachusetts has a new town green, complete with bandstand.

—Alan D. Haas

b

: putting green

c

: bowling green

5

informal : money

especially : U.S. paper money : greenbacks

6

or Green : environmentalist

especially : a member of an activist political party focusing on environmental and social issues

7

physics : one of the three colors (see color entry 1 sense 15) that quarks have in the theory of quantum chromodynamics

Whereas there is just one kind of electric charge, however, there are three kinds of color charge, usually called red, blue and green. (The names, of course, have nothing to do with colors in the everyday sense.)

—Elliott D. Bloom and Gary J. Feldman

greeny

ˈgrē-nē 

adjective

green

3 of 3

verb

greened; greening; greens

transitive verb

1

: to make green

2

: rejuvenate, revitalize

intransitive verb

: to become green

Phrases

green around the gills

: pale or sickly in appearance

Synonyms

Adjective

• grown
• leafy
• lush
• luxuriant
• overgrown
• verdant

Noun

• flora
• foliage
• greenery
• herbage
• leafage
• vegetation
• verdure

Examples of green in a Sentence

Adjective

fields green with meadow grass

a new pitcher who's pretty green, even by rookie standards

Noun

a mixture of blues and greens

The town green was the center of activity.

It took him four shots to get to the green.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

In March 2024, for the first time, scientists observed a visible green aurora on Mars. —Doyle Rice, USA Today, 15 May 2025

Several Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tax breaks got the boot, including green energy credits. —Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes.com, 14 May 2025

Noun

Look for blush pink, bubble hems, whimsical florals, veils and every shade of green on the spectrum, from pistachio to neon. —Hannah Vanbiber, New York Times, 1 May 2025

Europe’s regional Stoxx 600 index ended Wednesday in the green, even after global stocks were rattled by news that the U.S. economy contracted 0.3% in the first quarter. —Ganesh Rao,jenni Reid,chloe Taylor, CNBC, 1 May 2025

Verb

Western Canada’s fire season typically has a slight dip in severity in the late spring when plants have greened up, until intense summer heat arrives and dries out the ground and fuels again. —Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 14 May 2025

Research also shows that greening strategies can improve community health, cohesion and equity. —Deyanira Nevárez Martínez, The Conversation, 14 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Noun, and Verb

Middle English grene, from Old English grēne; akin to Old English grōwan to grow

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Phrases Containing green

• blue-green alga
• bottle green
• bowling green
• chrome green
• emerald green
• forest green
• green alga
• green anole
• green bean
• green card
• green chemistry
• green-collar
• green corn
• green dragon
• green-eyed
• green-eyed monster
• green fingers
• green flash
• green gland
• green heron
• green light
• green manure
• green mold
• green monkey
• green onion
• green paper
• green peach aphid
• green pepper
• green revolution
• green screen
• green snake
• green soap
• green sunfish
• green tea
• green thumb
• green turtle
• green vegetable
• green-winged teal
• green with envy
• hunter green
• jade green
• Janus green
• kelly green
• Kendal green
• lime green
• long green
• moss green
• nile green
• olive green
• Paris green
• pea green
• putting green
• red-green blindness
• red-green color blindness
• re-green
• sap green
• sea green
• the green light
• turquoise green
• yellow-green alga

Rhymes for green

• bean
• bein
• bien
• bouin
• chine
• clean
• deen
• diene
• gene
• glean
• jean
• keen

Kids Definition

green

1 of 2 adjective

ˈgrēn 

1

: of the color green

2

a

: covered by green leaves or herbs

b

: consisting of green plants or of the leafy part of a plant

a green salad

3

: not fully grown or ripe

4

a

: marked by a sickly appearance

b

: envious

—used especially in the phrase green with envy

5

: lacking training, knowledge, or experience

green troops

6

a

: concerned with or supporting environmentalism

b

: tending to preserve the quality of the environment

green dish soap

greenish

ˈgrē-nish 

adjective

greenly

ˈgrēn-lē

adverb

greenness

ˈgrēn-nəs 

noun

green

2 of 2 noun

1

: a color (as that of fresh grass) that ranges between blue and yellow

2

a

: green vegetation

b

plural : leafy parts of plants used for some purpose (as ornament or food)

3

: a grassy plain or plot

especially : a smooth grassy area at the end of a golf fairway containing the hole

4

: money sense 1a

5

often capitalized : environmentalist

especially : a member of a political party focusing on environmental and social issues

greeny

ˈgrē-nē

adjective

Medical Definition

green

1 of 2 adjective

ˈgrēn 

1

: of the color green

2

of a wound : being recently incurred and unhealed

3

: marked by a pale, sickly, or nauseated appearance

4

of hemolytic streptococci : tending to produce green pigment when cultured on blood media

green

2 of 2 noun

1

: a color whose hue is somewhat less yellow than that of growing fresh grass or of the emerald or is that of the part of the spectrum lying between blue and yellow

2

: a pigment or dye that colors green see janus green

Geographical Definition

Green

geographical name

ˈgrēn 

1

river 730 miles (1175 kilometers) long in the western U.S. flowing from the Wind River Range in western Wyoming south into the Colorado River in southeastern Utah

2

city in northeastern Ohio south of Akron population 22,817

Biographical Definition

Green 1 of 2

biographical name (1)

Julien or Julian 1900–1998 French novelist

Green

2 of 2

biographical name (2)

William 1873–1952 American labor leader