cyan

1 of 2

noun

cy·​an ˈsī-ˌan 

-ən

: a greenish-blue color

—used in photography and color printing of one of the primary colors

cyan-

2 of 2

combining form

variants or cyano-

1

: dark blue : blue

cyanobacterium

2

: cyanogen

cyanide

3

: cyanide

cyanogenetic

Examples of cyan in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Colors are also a bit warm in Movie mode, with magentas in particular learning toward red and cyans also leaning toward green. —PCMAG, 19 Feb. 2025

Derivation and meaning: The name Azure is derived from the English word azure, referring to the color between cyan and blue on the spectrum of visible light. —Ryan Brennan, Kansas City Star, 20 Jan. 2025

Greens and yellows fall just a bit short of fully covering the DCI-P3 color space, and cyans lean a bit green, but performance is still excellent. —PCMAG, 30 May 2024

The state-of-the-art LEDs distill a shadowless light that also moves through certain shades such as cyans and magentas that your eyes perceive but your phone camera can’t differentiate. —Siddhartha Mitter, New York Times, 10 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Greek kyanos

Combining form

German, from Greek kyan-, kyano-, from kyanos dark blue enamel

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1889, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for cyan

• afghan
• bedpan
• began
• caveman
• chapin
• crankpin
• deadpan
• dextran
• divan
• doorman
• fishman
• flagman

Kids Definition

cyan

noun

cy·​an ˈsī-ˌan 

-ən

: a greenish blue