pink

I. pink¹ S2 W3 /pɪŋk/ BrE AmE adjective
[Date: 1600-1700; Origin: Probably from ⇨ ↑pink²(2)]
1. pale red:
bright pink lipstick
Hannah’s face went pink. ⇨ ↑shocking pink
2. [only before noun] British English relating to people who are ↑homosexual

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

pink

pink [pink pinks pinked pinking pinker pinkest] adjective, noun, verb [pɪŋk] [pɪŋk]

adjective
1. pale red in colour
• pale pink roses
• She went bright pink with embarrassment.

• The sun was now just a pink glow in the evening sky.

2. only before noun (BrE) connected with homosexual people

• the pink pound (= money spent by homosexuals as an influence in the economy)

3. (politics) (informal, disapproving) having or showing slightly left-wing political views
• pale pink politics
compare red _adj.
see be tickled pink at tickle _v.
Word Origin:
adj. and n. sense 1 mid 17th cent. pink
n. sense 2 late 16th cent. pink eye ‘small or half-shut eye’ French oeillet ‘little eye’
v. early 20th cent.

Example Bank:
• He was pink with anger.
• She could feel herself going pink.
• The western sky was glowing pink.
Idiom: in the pink

Derived Word: pinkness

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition

pink / pɪŋk / adjective (COLOUR)

A2 of a pale red colour:

pretty pink flowers

Have you been in the sun? Your nose is a bit pink.

pinkness / ˈpɪŋk.nəs / noun [ U ]

pink / pɪŋk / adjective old-fashioned disapproving (POLITICS)

(slightly) supporting socialist ideas and principles

pink / pɪŋk / adjective (GAY)

connected with gay people:

the growth in the pink economy

Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary

pink

/pɪŋk/
(pinker, pinkest, pinks)

Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.

1.
Pink is the colour between red and white.
...pink lipstick.
...white flowers edged in pink.
...sweaters in a variety of pinks and blues.
COLOUR
• pink‧ish
Her nostrils were pinkish, as though she had a cold.
ADJ
• pink‧ness
Meat which has been cooked thoroughly shows no traces of pinkness.
N-UNCOUNT

2.
If you go pink, your face turns a slightly redder colour than usual because you are embarrassed or angry, or because you are doing something energetic.
She went pink again as she remembered her mistake.
= flush
COLOUR: usu v-link COLOUR

3.
Pink is used to refer to things relating to or connected with homosexuals.
Businesses are now more aware of the importance of the ‘pink pound’.
ADJ

4.
Pinks are small plants that people grow in their gardens. They have sweet-smelling pink, white, or red flowers.
N-COUNT: usu pl