blue

adj, verb, noun — 49 senses

blue

adjalso spelled Blue

CA, UK, US /bluː/ · /bljuː/

Etymology

From Middle English blew, blewe, from Anglo-Norman blew, from Middle French bleu, from Old French blöe, bleve, blef (“blue”), from Frankish *blāu (“blue”) (perhaps through a Late Latin blāvus, blāvius (“blue”) attested from Isidore of Seville), from Proto-Germanic *blēwaz (“blue, dark blue”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰlēw- (“yellow, blond, grey”). Cognate with dialectal English blow (“blue”), Scots blue, blew (“blue”), North Frisian bla, blö (“blue”), Saterland Frisian blau (“blue”), Dutch blauw (“blue”), German blau (“blue”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish blå (“blue”), Faroese bláur (“blue”), Icelandic blár (“blue”), Latin flāvus (“yellow”), French bleu (“blue”), Middle Irish blá (“yellow”). Doublet of blow. Possibly related also to English blee (“colour”), from Old English blēo (“colour”); but direct derivatives of Proto-Germanic *blēwaz (“blue, dark blue”) in Old English include: Old English blāw and blēo (“blue”), Old English blǣwen (“bluish, light-blue”), blǣhǣwen (“blue-coloured, bluish, violet or purple colour”, literally “blue-hued”). There seems to be a parallel connection in Germanic between words for blue and colour, dually exemplified by Proto-West Germanic *blīu (“colour, blee”) and *blāu (“blue”); and Proto-Germanic *hiwją (“colour, hue”) and *hāwī (“blue, purple”). (depressed): Compare typologically Russian тоска́ зелёная (toská zeljónaja) (<+ зелёный (zeljónyj)). Also compare фиоле́тово (fiolétovo).

15 senses
  1. 1Of a blue hue.
  2. 2Depressed, melancholic, sad.
  3. 3Having a bluish or purplish shade to the skin due to a…
  4. 4Pale, without redness or glare.
  5. 5Supportive of, run by (a member of), pertaining to, or…
  6. 6Supportive of or related to the Liberal Party.
  7. 7Supportive of or related to the Conservative Party.
  8. 8Of, dominated by, or shifted toward the higher-frequency…
  9. 9Having a colour charge of blue.
  10. 10Extra rare; left very raw and cold.
  11. 11Having a coat of fur of a slaty gray shade.
  12. 12Severe or overly strict in morals; gloomy.
  13. 13Literary; scholarly; bluestockinged.
  14. 14Risqué; obscene; profane; pornographic.
  15. 15Drunk.
1

Of a blue hue.

  • the deep blue sea
  • Why is the sky blue?
2 more examples
  • He was wearing a blue t-shirt.
  • Gerty's were of the bluest Irish blue, set off by lustrous lashes and dark expressive brows. Time was when those brows were not so silkily seductive1922 February, James Joyce, “[Episode 13]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company, […], →OCLC:
2

Informal Depressed, melancholic, sad.

  • “Heavens!” exclaimed Nina, “the blue-stocking and the fogy!—and yours are pale blue, Eileen!—you’re about as self-conscious as Drina—slumping there with your hair tumbling à la Mérode! Oh, it's very picturesque, of course, but a straight spine and good grooming is better.[…]”1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter IX, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
  • "Will you play some of the 'Garden' now?" she asked. "I think I should like it. I'm just the least bit blue."1904, Guy Wetmore Carryl, The Transgression of Andrew Vane, Henry Holt and Company, page 140:
1 more example
  • But I'm bluer than blue / Sadder than sad.1978, Michael Johnson, Bluer Than Blue:
3

Having a bluish or purplish shade to the skin due to a lack of oxygen to the normally deep-red red blood cells; cyanotic.

  • My hands were blue with cold.
  • The divers got them out of the car just in time – they were starting to turn blue.
4

Of a flame Pale, without redness or glare.

  • The candle burns blue.

› Supportive of, run by (a member of)…

5

Government, Politics US Supportive of, run by (a member of), pertaining to, or dominated by the Democratic Party.

  • I live in a blue constituency.  Congress turned blue in the mid-term elections.
6

Government, Politics Australian Supportive of or related to the Liberal Party.

  • Illawarra turns blue in Liberal washout
7

Government, Politics UK Supportive of or related to the Conservative Party.

8

Astronomy, Natural sciences Of, dominated by, or shifted toward the higher-frequency, or "bluer", end of the electromagnetic spectrum.

9

Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Physics Particle Having a colour charge of blue.

10

Of steak Extra rare; left very raw and cold.

11

Of a dog or cat Having a coat of fur of a slaty gray shade.

12

Archaic Severe or overly strict in morals; gloomy.

  • blue and sour religionists;  blue laws
13

Archaic, Of women Literary; scholarly; bluestockinged.

  • Some of the ladies were very blue and well informed, reading Mrs. Somerville and frequenting the Royal Institution; others were severe and Evangelical, and held by Exeter Hall.1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, chapter 61, in Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC:
14

Informal Risqué; obscene; profane; pornographic.

  • His material is too blue for prime time.
  • The air was blue with oaths.
1 more example
  • a blue movie
15

Dated, Slang Drunk.

  • My wine I drank and oft got blue / On brandy, gin and whisky too— / Until my reputation gay, / Along with care, was cast away —1847, Jacob Carter, My Drunken Life, in Fifteen Chapters, from 1825 to 1847, page 76:
Synonyms
azure, cerulean, navy, sapphire, adult, X-rated
Antonyms
nonblue, unblue, conservative, red, Republican, antiblue

blue

verb
Etymology

From Middle English blew, blewe, from Anglo-Norman blew, from Middle French bleu, from Old French blöe, bleve, blef (“blue”), from Frankish *blāu (“blue”) (perhaps through a Late Latin blāvus, blāvius (“blue”) attested from Isidore of Seville), from Proto-Germanic *blēwaz (“blue, dark blue”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰlēw- (“yellow, blond, grey”). Cognate with dialectal English blow (“blue”), Scots blue, blew (“blue”), North Frisian bla, blö (“blue”), Saterland Frisian blau (“blue”), Dutch blauw (“blue”), German blau (“blue”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish blå (“blue”), Faroese bláur (“blue”), Icelandic blár (“blue”), Latin flāvus (“yellow”), French bleu (“blue”), Middle Irish blá (“yellow”). Doublet of blow. Possibly related also to English blee (“colour”), from Old English blēo (“colour”); but direct derivatives of Proto-Germanic *blēwaz (“blue, dark blue”) in Old English include: Old English blāw and blēo (“blue”), Old English blǣwen (“bluish, light-blue”), blǣhǣwen (“blue-coloured, bluish, violet or purple colour”, literally “blue-hued”). There seems to be a parallel connection in Germanic between words for blue and colour, dually exemplified by Proto-West Germanic *blīu (“colour, blee”) and *blāu (“blue”); and Proto-Germanic *hiwją (“colour, hue”) and *hāwī (“blue, purple”). (depressed): Compare typologically Russian тоска́ зелёная (toská zeljónaja) (<+ зелёный (zeljónyj)). Also compare фиоле́тово (fiolétovo).

1

Ergative To make or become blue; to turn blue.

  • It blows, it snows, And blues your nose, My toes are all frost bitten The weather would Quite starve the crows, Or freeze the part you sit on.1900 July 8, The Truth, Sydney, page 1, column 6:
  • The dawn is wanly blueing.1921, D[avid] H[erbert] Lawrence, “The Sea”, in Sea and Sardinia, New York, N.Y.: Thomas Seltzer, →OCLC, page 48:
1 more example
  • Michael: As a member of the Blue Man Group?[…] Tobias: Oh, no, no, I’m not in the group yet. No, I’m afraid I just blue myself.2004 November 7, Mitchell Hurwitz and Richard Rosenstock, “The One Where Michael Leaves”, in Arrested Development, season 2, episode 1, spoken by Tobias Fünke (David Cross):
2

Engineering, Metallurgy, Natural sciences, Physical sciences To treat the surface of steel so that it is passivated chemically and becomes more resistant to rust.

3

To brighten by treating with blue (laundry aid).

4

Australia, Slang To fight, brawl, or argue.

  • It was years since Ken had flogged her up, but blueing with him still made her ache.2018, Melissa Lucashenko, Too Much Lip, University of Queensland Press, published 2023, page 146:
Derived terms
734 termsabyssal blue, academy blue, Adonis blue, alcian blue, ant-blue, antiblue, Arctic blue etc, azodiphenyl blue, azovan blue, baby blue eyes etc, Berlin blue, berry blue, between the devil and the deep blue sea, biblical blue, bice blue, big blue blanket, big blue room, Bisbee blue, black and blue, black-and-blue, bleen, blue acara, blue admiral, blue ammonia, Blue Anchor, Blue Andalusian, blue-and-gold macaw, blue-and-white, blue-and-yellow macaw, blue angel, blue ant, blue antelope, blue argus, blue asbestos, blue ash, blue ash tree, blue baby, blue baby syndrome, blueback, blue badge, blue bag, blue-ball, blue-balled, blue baller, blue-baller, blue-balling, blue balls, blue-banded eggfly, blue-banded sea krait, Blue Bay, blue bean, Bluebeard, bluebeard, blue-bearded, bluebeat, blue beech, bluebell, blue-bellied black snake, blue belly, bluebelly, blue beret, blueberry etc, blue beryl, blue bible, bluebill, blue-billed duck, blue Billy, bluebird, Bluebird, blue-black, blue blanket, blue blazes, blue bloater, blue blood, blue-blooded, blue-blood, blueblossom, blue blossom Ceanothus thyrsiflorus), bluebonnet, blue bonnet, bluebook, blue book, blue book exam, blue book examination, bluebottle, blue bottle, blue bottle experiment, blue box, blue boxing, blue-breasted fairywren, bluebreast etc, blue bugle, blue bull, bluebunch, blue butter, blue button etc, bluecap, blue-capped ifrit, blue-capped kingfisher, blue carbon, blue card, blue cat, blue catfish, blue chalksticks, blue chamber, blue check, blue check mark, blue checkmark, blue-cheeked bee-eater, blue cheese, blue cheese dressing, Blue China, blue-chinned, blue-chip, blue chip, blue-chipper, blue chip swap, blue circle rate, bluecoat, blue code, blue code of silence, blue cod, blue cohosh, blue-collar, blue-collared, blue-collar work, blue-collar worker, bluecomb, blue corn, Blue Cow, blue crab, blue crane, blue creeping gromwell, Blue Crown, bluecurls, blue daisy, blue dandelion, blue dart, blue dasher, blue daze, blue detuning, blue devil, blue devils, blue diamond impatiens, blue diaper syndrome, blue discharge, blue disease, blue doe, blue dragon, blue drawers, blue duck, blue duiker, blue dwarf, blue-ear disease, blue ear disease, blue-eared kingfisher, blue-ear pig disease, Blue Earth, Blue Earth County, Blue Earth River, blue economy, Blue Ensign, blue-eye, blue-eye cod, blue-eyed, blue-eyed boy, blue-eyed cormorant, blue-eyed grass, blue-eyed Mary, blue-eyed shag, blue-eyed soul, bluefaced, blue-faced honeyeater, blue falcon, blue fenugreek, blue fever, blue fig, blue film, bluefin, bluefin tuna, blue fire, bluefish, blue fit, blue flag, blue flash, blue flax, blue flier, blue flu, blue fly, blue flyer, blue force, blue fox, blue frog, blue-fronted jay, blue funk, blue giant, bluegill, blue ginger, blue gold, Blue Goose, Bluegown, blue grama, bluegrass, blue grass, blue-gray, blue-green, blue-green alga, Blue-Green alliance, blue-green bacterium, blue-green deployment, blue-grey, blue ground beetle, blue ground dove, blue grouse, blue gum, blue hair, bluehair, blue hare, Blue Haven, Blue Hawke, bluehead, blue-headed wagtail, bluehearts, blue heaven, blue heeler, blue-helmet, blue helmet, blue hen, blue hen-hawk, Blue Hen's Chicken, blue heron, Blue Hill, blue hole, blue hook star, blue hour, Blue House, blue hydrogen, blue ice, blue iceberg, blueing, bluing, blueish, Blue Island, blueism, blue jack, bluejacket, blue jaundice, Blue Java, blue-jawed, blue jay, bluejay, blue jeans, blue jean, blue jet, blue job, blue John, blue king crab, Blue Knob, blue land crab, blue law, blue lead, blueless, blue lie, blue light, blue light bandit, blue light disco, blue-light special, blue light special, blueline, blue line, blue-lined, blue line process, blueliner, blue link, blue-linked, blue-lipped sea krait, blue list, blue lives matter, bluelizardite, Blue Lodge, blue lotus, bluely, blue manna crab, Blue Mantle, blue marble tree, blue marsh hawk, blue martyrdom, blue mass, blue meanie, blue measles, Blue Mediterranean, blue metal, bluemink, blue mold, blue Monday, blue money, blue monkey, blue moon, Blue Mountain, Blue Mountain Heights, Blue Mountains, Blue Mountains National Park, blue movie, blue murder, blue mussel, bluen, blue-necked ostrich, blueness, bluenette, Blue Nile, Blue Nobby, blue noise, blue norther, blue nose, blue-nosed, bluenose, blue note, blue notice, blue oak, blue-ocean, blue ointment, blue-on-blue, blue orchid, blue pages, blue pansy, Blue Pearl of Morocco, blue-pencil, blue pencil doctrine, blue peter, Blue Peter, blue petrel, blue pigeon, blue pigeon flyer, blue pike, blue pill, blue-pill, blue pine, blue pipe, blue planet, blue plaque, blue plate, blue-plate, blue plate special, blue-plate special, blue point, bluepoint, blue pony ant, blue potato, blue-print, blueprint, blue print, blue racer, blue raspberry, blue rat's tail, blue-red, Blue Revolution, blue riband, Blue Riband, blue ribbon, blue-ribbon, Blue Ridge, Bluerina, blue-ringed octopus, blue rinse, bluerinse, blue-rinse, blue-rinse brigade, blue-rinsed, Blue River, blue riverdamsel, Blue Rocks, blue rock thrush, blue roll, blue room, blue rubber, blue rubber bleb nevus syndrome, blue ruin, blue runner, Blue Russia, Blue Russian, blues, blue sage, blue sailor, blue sandalwood, blue sausage fruit, blue savory, blue scale, blueschist, blue screen, bluescreen, blue screen of death, blue seal, blue shark, blue sheep, blue shift, blueshift, blue shirt, Blueshirt, blue shrimp, blueside, blue-sided leaf frog, blue-skies, blue skimmer, blue-sky, blue sky, blue sky law, blue-sky law, blue-sky thinking, blue slip, bluesman, blue Smarties, blue snakeweed, blue space, blue spot, bluespotted, blue spruce, blue square, blue stain, bluestar, blue starter, blue star wife, blue state, bluestem, blue-stocking, bluestocking, bluestone, blue straggler, blue streak, bluestreak, bluestripe, blue suit, blue supergiant, blue swallow, blue swimmer crab, blue swimming crab, bluesy, bluet, bluetail, blue tang, blue tape, blue team, blue teamer, blue tet, blueth, blue threeawn, blue-throated goldentail, blue-throated sapphire, bluethroat, bluetick, blue tick, blue ticket, blue-tile fever, blue tit, bluetit, blue titmouse, blue toe syndrome, bluetongue, blue-tongue, blue-tongued skink, blue-tongue lizard, blue-tongued lizard, Blue-Tooner, Bluetooth, blue top, bluetop, blue triangle, bluette, Blue Vale, blue vanda, blue vein, blue-veined cheese, blue vervain, blue vitriol, blue vulva, blue waffle disease, blue waffle, blue wall, blue wall of silence, blueward, bluewards, bluewash, blue water, blue-water, bluewater, Bluewater, blue-water navy, Bluewater Park, blue-wattled crow, blue wave, blue waxweed, blueway, blue weed, blueweed, blue whale, blue-white screen, blue whiting, blue wildebeest, bluewing, blue-winged grasshopper, blue-winged kookaburra, blue-winged laughingthrush, blue-winged macaw, blue won, bluewood, blue wood sedge, blue wren, Bluey, bluey, blue zone, bluish, bluishness, Blu-ray, blurple, bolt out of the blue, bolt from the blue, Bonney's blue, boy in blue, Bristol blue glass, bromophenol blue, bromothymol blue, bromthymol blue, bronze blue, butcher blue, calm blue ocean, Cambridge blue, Carolina blue, celestial blue, cerulean blue, chalkhill blue, Chartres blue, Chilean blue mussel, china blue, Chinese blue, clear blue water, cobalt blue, code blue, Colly Blue, colonial blue, Colorado blue spruce, Columbia blue, common blue, Copenhagen blue, cornflower blue, Coventry blue, cry blue murder, cycad blue, Danish blue, dark blue, dark blue snakeweed, dark-blue snakeweed, deep blue, deep blue sea, Delft blue, desert blue, dolly blue, duck-egg blue, Duke blue, Dumont's blue, dusky-blue, eggshell blue, Egyptian blue, electric-blue, electric blue, engineer's blue, Eschel blue, Eton blue, Evans blue, false blue indigo, fast blue optical transient, flow blue, fly the blue pigeon, forest-blue, gentian blue, Glandon blue, glass blue-eye, granite blue, gray-blue, great blue heron, great blue lobelia, greenish blue, grey-blue, grue, Guimet's blue, Haarlem blue, haint blue, half blue, Han blue, Hawaiian blue eyes, heath-blue, Himalayan blue poppy, holly blue, ice blue, indigo blue, into the wide blue yonder, iron blue, isosulfan blue, is the sky blue, jouvence blue, Kerry Blue Terrier, large blue, laundry blue, leukomethylene blue, light blue, light the blue touchpaper, like a blue-arsed fly, line-blue, little blue man, little blue pill, long-tailed blue, Madonna blue, Majorelle blue, marking blue, Maya blue, Mayan blue, mazarine blue, Mediterranean blue, Meldola's blue, men in blue ties, methylene blue, midnight blue, Milori blue, mineral blue, Mohammedan blue, molybdenum blue, monoblue, moonlight blue, mountain blue, naphthol blue, Nattier blue, navy blue, night blue, Nile blue, nodding blue lily, non-photo blue, non-repro blue, oak-blue, ocean blue, Old Blue, once in a blue moon, oriental blue, out of the blue, out the blue, Oxford blue, pale blue dot, patrician blue, peacock blue, Peligot's blue, pencil-blue, Persian blue, petrol blue, phthalo blue, plushblue, potash blue, powder blue, Prussian blue, pure blue, pygmy blue whale, Queensland Blue, reblue, robin's-egg blue, robin egg blue, Roslyn blue, royal blue, Russian Blue, Russian blue potato, Saunders blue, Savoy blue, saxe blue, Saxon blue, Scotch blue, scream blue murder, screwed, blued and tattooed, sea-blue histiocytosis, short-tailed blue, Shropshire Blue, Silverblu, silver-studded blue, Singapore blue, Singapore blue tarantula, sky blue-pink, sky-blue-pink, sky blue pink, sky-blue pink, sky blue, sky-blue, slate blue, small blue, southern blue gum, spirit blue, starlight blue, steel-blue, steel blue, Swedish Blue, talk a blue streak, TARDIS blue, Tasmanian blue gum, telegraph blue, thin blue line, thumb blue, thymol blue, Tiffany blue, triisopropylsilyloxycarbonylleucomethylene blue, true blue, true-blue, trypan blue, Turkey blue, Turnbull's blue, turn the air blue, turquoise blue, Tyndall blue, until one is blue in the face, USPS blue box, Venetian blue, Venice blue, Vestorian blue, Victoria blue, vote blue no matter who, washing blue, Waterloo blue, Wedgwood blue, western pygmy blue, white-blue-white flag, white-tailed blue flycatcher, wide blue yonder, wild blue yonder, Windsor blue, wine-blue, winter blue, woodland blue phlox, work blue, Wurster's blue, Xerces blue, Yale blue, YInMn blue
Related terms
Havasupai, primary colour, rainbow, RGB

Blue

noun

Etymology From the German surname, Americanized from Blau or its French cognate bleu.

1

A letterman at Oxford or Cambridge.

2

Historical A member of the Royal Horse Guards (which merged with the 1st Dragoons in 1969)

  • Have you heard any news / Of that chap in the Blues / Was it Prosser, or Pyecroft, or Pimm?1944, Noël Coward, I Wonder What Happened to Him?, first verse:
3

Synonym of British Blue (“a breed of cat”).

  • This Blue shows the remarkable, sleek bodyline of the breed.2001, Alan Edwards, The New Guide to Cat Breeds, page 89:

blue

noun
Etymology

From Middle English blew, blewe, from Anglo-Norman blew, from Middle French bleu, from Old French blöe, bleve, blef (“blue”), from Frankish *blāu (“blue”) (perhaps through a Late Latin blāvus, blāvius (“blue”) attested from Isidore of Seville), from Proto-Germanic *blēwaz (“blue, dark blue”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰlēw- (“yellow, blond, grey”). Cognate with dialectal English blow (“blue”), Scots blue, blew (“blue”), North Frisian bla, blö (“blue”), Saterland Frisian blau (“blue”), Dutch blauw (“blue”), German blau (“blue”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish blå (“blue”), Faroese bláur (“blue”), Icelandic blár (“blue”), Latin flāvus (“yellow”), French bleu (“blue”), Middle Irish blá (“yellow”). Doublet of blow. Possibly related also to English blee (“colour”), from Old English blēo (“colour”); but direct derivatives of Proto-Germanic *blēwaz (“blue, dark blue”) in Old English include: Old English blāw and blēo (“blue”), Old English blǣwen (“bluish, light-blue”), blǣhǣwen (“blue-coloured, bluish, violet or purple colour”, literally “blue-hued”). There seems to be a parallel connection in Germanic between words for blue and colour, dually exemplified by Proto-West Germanic *blīu (“colour, blee”) and *blāu (“blue”); and Proto-Germanic *hiwją (“colour, hue”) and *hāwī (“blue, purple”). (depressed): Compare typologically Russian тоска́ зелёная (toská zeljónaja) (<+ зелёный (zeljónyj)). Also compare фиоле́тово (fiolétovo).

26 senses
  1. 1The colour of the clear sky or the deep sea; the colour…
  2. 2Anything coloured blue, especially to distinguish it…
  3. 3A blue dye or pigment.
  4. 4Blue clothing.
  5. 5A blue uniform. See blues.
  6. 6A member of a sports team that wears blue colours; (in…
  7. 7An umpire, in reference to the typical dark-blue colour…
  8. 8Sporting colours awarded by a university or other…
  9. 9A person who has received such sporting colours.
  10. 10A member of law enforcement.
  11. 11A bluestocking.
  12. 12The sky, literally or figuratively.
  13. 13The ocean; deep waters.
  14. 14The far distance; a remote or distant place.
  15. 15A dog or cat with a slaty gray coat.
  16. 16One of the colour balls used in snooker, with a value of…
  17. 17Any of the butterflies of the subfamily Polyommatinae in…
  18. 18A bluefish.
  19. 19An argument or brawl.
  20. 20A liquid with an intense blue colour, added to a laundry…
  21. 21Any of several processes to protect metal against rust.
  22. 22A type of firecracker.
  23. 23One of the three colour charges for quarks.
  24. 24A member or supporter of the Conservative Party.
  25. 25A blue cheese.
  26. 26Risqué or pornographic material.
1

The colour of the clear sky or the deep sea; the colour midway between green and violet in the visible spectrum and one of the primary additive colours.

  • Lady Penrhyn was quite handsome enough to have spared one ingredient in her cup of fascination, but, unfortunately, having been married in her teens, she expected to live in them, and, never being reminded by the trials to which her sex is subject, of the flight of years, and the inroads of suffering, expected time to stand still, and the first bloom of existence (the blue on the plum) to remain as stationary as her own taste, for the pleasures of flirtation.1838 (date written), L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XVI, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], published 1842, →OCLC, page 204:
  • She watches the yachts in the creamy evening blues.2004, David Mitchell, Cloud Atlas, London: Sceptre (Hodder and Stoughton), →ISBN:
1 more example
  • Red No. 3, red No. 40, blue No. 2 and green No. 3 all have been linked with cancer or tumors in animals. Other sources say red No. 40 and yellow No. 5 and No. 6 contain or may be contaminated with known carcinogens.2025 March 29, Kristen Rogers, “Over half of US states are trying to eliminate food dyes. Here’s what you can do now”, in CNN:
2

Anything coloured blue, especially to distinguish it from similar objects differing only in colour.

  • I don't like red Smarties. Have you got a blue?
3

A blue dye or pigment.

4

Blue clothing.

  • The boys in blue marched to the pipers.
5

In plural A blue uniform. See blues.

6

A member of a sports team that wears blue colours; (in the plural) a nickname for the team as a whole. See also blues.

  • Come on, you blues!
7

Ball games, Baseball, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Slang An umpire, in reference to the typical dark-blue colour of the umpire's uniform. Sometimes perceived by umpires as derogatory when used by players or coaches while disputing a call.

  • He was safe! Terrible call, blue!
8

Sporting colours awarded by a university or other institution for sporting achievement, such as representing one's university, especially and originally at Oxford and Cambridge Universities in England. See also full blue, half blue.

  • He excelled at rowing and received a blue in the sport at Oxford.
9

A person who has received such sporting colours.

  • He was a rugby blue at Cambridge.
10

Slang A member of law enforcement.

  • He dialed Kathy to be sure she was okay and see if the blues arrived. She was crying when she picked up the phone. “Kathy, honey, I'm here. It'll be okay. Are the police there?”2022, Jim Malloy, Die, Mother Goose, Die:
11

Historical A bluestocking.

12

The sky, literally or figuratively.

  • The balloon floated up into the blue.
  • His request for leave came out of the blue.
13

The ocean; deep waters.

14

The far distance; a remote or distant place.

  • The problem with buffalo as well as most African antelopes as a steady diet is that they have very little marbling or body fat and, after six months out in the blue, one dreams at night of a T-bone steak sizzling in great globules of yellow fat.1978, Peter Hathaway Capstick, Death in the Long Grass, →ISBN:
15

A dog or cat with a slaty gray coat.

  • On average, blues and other dilutes have weaker coats and skin problems seem more prevalent in the dilutes.2000, Joe Stahlkuppe, American Pit Bull Terrier Handbook, page 131:
16

Ball games, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Snooker, Sports One of the colour balls used in snooker, with a value of five points.

17

Biology, Entomology, Natural sciences Any of the butterflies of the subfamily Polyommatinae in the family Lycaenidae, most of which have blue on their wings.

  • The large and handsome spectre-butterfly, Hestia durvillei; the pale-winged peacock butterfly, Drusilla catops; and the most brilliant and wonderful of the clear-winged moths, Cocytia durvillei, were especially interesting, as well, as several little "blues," equalling in brilliancy and beauty anything the butterfly world can produce.1869, Alfred Russel Wallace, The Malay Archipelago, volume II, London: Macmillan and Co., page 199:
18

A bluefish.

  • When snow falls on the roses, when a mako is beheaded, when the weaks and blues swim south1974 February 2, Roger Frye, “Warm Heart”, in Gay Community News, volume 1, number 32, page 20:
  • Blues are about as vicious a fish as you'll find on the Atlantic seaboard — they will continue to slash through schools of bait even after they have eaten so much that they're constantly regurgitating shredded baitfish.2012, Lenny Rudow, Rudow's Guide to Fishing the Mid Atlantic, page 102:
19

Australia, Colloquial An argument or brawl.

  • "I had a blue with Dad," said Fay. "He wanted to drive us, I wanted to walk."2004, Tim Winton, The Turning (short stories), Picador UK Paperback edition 2006. Short story, 'Small Mercies' (at p.91)
  • If they had a blue between themselves, they kept it there, it never flowed out onto the streets to innocent people — like a lot of things that have been happenin′ on the streets today.2008, Cheryl Jorgensen, The Taint, page 135:
2 more examples
  • On another occasion, there was a blue between Henry Daniels and Merv Wilson down at the pig sale. I don′t know what it was about, it only lasted a minute or so, but they shook hands when it was over and that was the end of it.2009, John Gilfoyle, Remember Cannon Hill, page 102:
  • I was a bit disappointed. Was that it? No abuse like Lord Byron had endured? Not that I was wishing that upon myself. It was just that a blue between my parents, albeit a raging, foul, bile-spitting hate fest, was not exactly Charles Dickens.2011, Julietta Jameson, Me, Myself and Lord Byron, unnumbered page:
20

A liquid with an intense blue colour, added to a laundry wash to prevent yellowing of white clothes.

  • It was applied methodically, carefully, resolutely, as in the fashion of a Satin-bird with charcoal, desiccated wood or blue from laundry-bags.1948, Alec H. Chisholm, Bird Wonders of Australia, page 13:
21

Any of several processes to protect metal against rust.

22

UK A type of firecracker.

  • Lord Lyttelton's Life by Dr Johnson […] which a whole tribe of Blues, with Mrs Montagu at their Head, have Vowed to execrate and revenge […]1781, Frances Burney, Journals & Letters, Penguin, published 2001, page 172:
23

Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Physics Particle One of the three colour charges for quarks.

24

Government, Politics UK A member or supporter of the Conservative Party.

  • He is a true blue.
25

A blue cheese.

  • "No, just get over here. You need to try this one!" she exclaimed as she cheesed up a chunk of bread with one of our blues.2005, J. B. Dann, Anecdotal, page 233:
  • Blues are made via the introduction of molds from the genus Penicillum roqueforti, which are normally added to the milk toward the beginning of the cheesemaking process.2012, Culture Magazine, Laurel Miller, Thalassa Skinner, Cheese For Dummies (page 55)
26

Slang Risqué or pornographic material.

  • Improvising freely, he entered the stage with a karaoke set and introduced himself as a 'Bohemian street performer', before launching into a series of clubstyle gags and one-liners, promising 'a bit of blue for the Dads'[…]2009 February 25, S. Purcell, Popular Shakespeare: Simulation and Subversion on the Modern Stage, Springer, →ISBN, page 51:
  • Fuzz grinned and nodded at the stage. 'Bit of blue for the lads.' […] The stage was dimly lit, and populated by Nubian slaves and harem girls in artfully draped deshabille.2014 February 5, Charlie Flowers, Kill Order, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 176:
Synonyms
azure, blue, cerulean, indigo, navy, royal, sky blue, ultramarine, aqua, aquamarine, cyan, teal, turquoise
Related terms
cobalt, cornflower, denim, lapis lazuli, periwinkle, sapphire, red, orange, yellow, green, violet, white
Hypernyms
color, hue, pigment

blue

verb

Etymology Uncertain; possibly from blew, past tense of blow.

1

Dated, Slang To spend (money) extravagantly; to blow.

  • So far as I can see, there’s nothing to prevent you from drawing a cheque for fifty thousand and blueing the lot.1935, Dorothy L. Sayers, Gaudy Night:
  • They was willing to blue the lot and have nothing left when they got home except debts on the never-never.1974, GB Edwards, The Book of Ebenezer Le Page, New York, published 2007, page 311:

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — authors: page histories for blue and Blue.

Learn more