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• green
  green

  adjective

  of the color of growing foliage, between yellow and blue in the spectrum.
• Green
  Green

  noun

  Henrietta Howland Robinson Hetty, 1835–1916, U.S. financier.

green

¹ American  

[green] / grin /

adjective

• greener,
  comparative
• greenest
  superlative

1. of the color of growing foliage, between yellow and blue in the spectrum.

   green leaves.

2. covered with herbage or foliage; verdant.

   green fields.

3. characterized by the presence of verdure.

4. made of green vegetables, as lettuce, spinach, endive, or chicory.

   a green salad.

5. not fully developed or perfected in growth or condition; unripe; not properly aged.

   This peach is still green.

6. unseasoned; not dried or cured.

   green lumber.

7. immature in age or judgment; untrained; inexperienced.

   a green worker.

8. simple; unsophisticated; gullible; easily fooled.

9. fresh, recent, or new.

   an insult still green in his mind.

10. having a sickly appearance; pale; wan: She was excited and laughing happily when the plane took off, but when her skydiving instructor opened the door at 9,000 feet, her face went positively green with fear.

    You’re looking a little green there—are you going to be sick?

    She was excited and laughing happily when the plane took off, but when her skydiving instructor opened the door at 9,000 feet, her face went positively green with fear.

11. full of life and vigor; young.

    a man ripe in years but green in heart.

12. environmentally sound or beneficial.

    green computers.

13. (of wine) having a flavor that is raw, harsh, and acid, due especially to a lack of maturity.

14. freshly slaughtered or still raw.

    green meat.

15. not fired, as bricks or pottery.

16. (of cement or mortar) freshly set and not completely hardened.

17. Foundry.

    1. (of sand) sufficiently moist to form a compact lining for a mold without further treatment.

    2. (of a casting) as it comes from the mold.

    3. (of a powder, in powder metallurgy) unsintered.

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noun

• greens
  plural

1. a color intermediate in the spectrum between yellow and blue, an effect of light with a wavelength between 500 and 570 nanometers; found in nature as the color of most grasses and leaves while growing, of some fruits while ripening, and of the sea.

2. Art. a secondary color that has been formed by the mixture of blue and yellow pigments.

3. green coloring matter, as paint or dye.

4. 1. green material or clothing.

      to be dressed in green.

   2. Also called Army greens. greens. a blue-green uniform of the U.S. Army.

5. greens,

   1. fresh leaves or branches of trees, shrubs, etc., used for decoration.

   2. the leaves and stems of plants, as spinach, lettuce, or beets, used as food.

6. grassy land; a plot of grassy ground.

7. a piece of grassy ground constituting a town or village common.

8. Also called putting green. Golf. the area of closely cropped grass surrounding each hole.

9. bowling green.

10. a shooting range for archery.

11. Informal. green light.

12. Slang. Usually the green money; greenbacks.

    I'd like to buy a new car but I don't have the green.

13. Green, a member of the Green party.

verb (used with or without object)

• greens,
  present (3rd person singular)
• greened,
  past participle,  past
• greening
  present participle

1. to become or make green.

2. Informal. to restore the vitality of.

   Younger executives are greening corporate managements.

idioms

1. green with envy. envy.

2. read the green, to inspect a golf green, analyzing its slope and surface, so as to determine the difficulties to be encountered when putting.

3. green around the gills. gill.

Green ² American  

[green] / grin /

noun

1. Henrietta Howland Robinson Hetty, 1835–1916, U.S. financier.

2. Henry Henry Vincent Yorke, 1905–73, English novelist.

3. John Richard, 1837–83, English historian.

4. Julian, 1900–1998, French writer, born in U.S.

5. Paul Eliot, 1894–1981, U.S. playwright, novelist, and teacher.

6. William, 1873–1952, U.S. labor leader: president of the A.F.L. 1924–52.

7. a river flowing S from W Wyoming to join the Colorado River in SE Utah. 730 miles (1,175 km) long.

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green ¹ British  

/ ɡriːn /

noun

1. any of a group of colours, such as that of fresh grass, that lie between yellow and blue in the visible spectrum in the wavelength range 575–500 nanometres. Green is the complementary colour of magenta and with red and blue forms a set of primary colours

2. a dye or pigment of or producing these colours

3. something of the colour green

4. a small area of grassland, esp in the centre of a village

5. an area of ground used for a purpose

   a putting green

6. (plural)

   1. the edible leaves and stems of certain plants, eaten as a vegetable

   2. freshly cut branches of ornamental trees, shrubs, etc, used as a decoration

7. (sometimes capital) a person, esp a politician, who supports environmentalist issues (see sense 13)

8. slang money

9. slang marijuana of low quality

10. slang (plural) sexual intercourse

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adjective

1. of the colour green

2. greenish in colour or having parts or marks that are greenish

   a green monkey

3. (sometimes capital) concerned with or relating to conservation of the world's natural resources and improvement of the environment

   green policies

   the green consumer

4. vigorous; not faded

   a green old age

5. envious or jealous

6. immature, unsophisticated, or gullible

7. characterized by foliage or green plants

   a green wood

   a green salad

8. fresh, raw, or unripe

   green bananas

9. unhealthily pale in appearance

   he was green after his boat trip

10. denoting a unit of account that is adjusted in accordance with fluctuations between the currencies of the EU nations and is used to make payments to agricultural producers within the EU

    green pound

11. (of pottery) not fired

12. (of meat) not smoked or cured; unprocessed

    green bacon

13. metallurgy (of a product, such as a sand mould or cermet) compacted but not yet fired; ready for firing

14. (of timber) freshly felled; not dried or seasoned

15. (of concrete) not having matured to design strength

verb

1. to make or become green

Green ² British  

/ ɡriːn /

noun

1. Henry, real name Henry Vincent Yorke . 1905–73, British novelist: author of Living (1929), Loving (1945), and Back (1946)

2. John Richard. 1837–83, British historian; author of A Short History of the English People (1874)

3. T ( homas ) H ( ill ). 1836–82, British idealist philosopher. His chief work, Prolegomena to Ethics, was unfinished at his death

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green More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing green

• grass is always greener

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• greenage
  noun
• greenness
  noun
• outgreen
  verb (used with object)
• greenish
  adjective
• greeny
  adjective
• nongreen
  adjective
• ungreened
  adjective
• greenly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• greens
  plural

Adjectives

• greener
  comparative
• greenest
  superlative

Participles

• greening
  present
• greened
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• green
  simple
• greens
  simple
• have greened
  perfect
• has greened
  perfect
• am greening
  progressive
• are greening
  progressive
• is greening
  progressive
• have been greening
  perfect progressive
• has been greening
  perfect progressive

Past

• greened
  simple
• had greened
  perfect
• was greening
  progressive
• were greening
  progressive
• had been greening
  perfect progressive

Future

• will green
  simple
• will have greened
  perfect
• will be greening
  progressive
• will have been greening
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of green

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English grēne; cognate with German grün; akin to grow

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Explanation

Green is a color on the spectrum between blue and yellow, or made by mixing those colors. You might love the brilliant color of the green grass in the spring time. Green is a color you tend to see everywhere in nature, especially in the summer. Grass, trees, and plants are varying shades of green, and so is the lettuce that's used to make "a green salad." Green also means "unripe" as in a tomato, or "inexperienced," as in someone who's new at a job. In the 16th century, Shakespeare coined the phrase "the green-ey'd monster," and since then green has symbolized jealousy or envy.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

green Green greens greener greenest greened greening

Beijing’s $37 billion subsidy program is steering consumers toward smart gadgets and green technology.

From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2026

These can be seen on the tarmac at Kisangani's airport, dressed in green fatigues and carrying out maintenance on military aircraft.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

Pacific Time holding green baseball caps bearing the word “thinking” and the Claude logo sewn discreetly on the side of the caps.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

The accused, dressed in a green prison jumpsuit, was in court where he listened to proceedings through an interpreter.

From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026

Turning around, she finds a green door labeled Any Gender Restroom.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

When Davante Adams wanted out from the Green Bay Packers, he was sent to the Raiders where he had a 1,500-yard season playing with former Fresno State teammate Derek Carr.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026

The electric ride hailing service Green SM, founded in Vietnam in 2023, is making its first entry into the U.S. market in Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

Mr. Green is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a Free Expression columnist at WSJ Opinion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

It piled some pressure on Green leader Zack Polanski in the wake of a by-election defeat.

From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026

They knew our family favorite was “I Walked Through a Green Forest.”

From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo

My fridge is always stocked with: eggs, greens, a lot of Spindrift sparkling water, lemons.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

The “slop bowl” became internet shorthand for the familiar fast-casual mash-up — grains, greens, globally inspired protein, sauce, perhaps an avocado surcharge — assembled with the logic of a cafeteria line and an over-$10 price.

From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2026

The Englishwoman still could not buy a birdie putt on the slow greens but she never gave her opponent a sniff.

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026

Fiel, vice president of brand and creative at the AI-native startup Newton, loves reinventions of utilitarian clothing, favoring functional pieces in deep greens and blacks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

I tucked my hands into the sleeves of my robes and wandered among the tents, the animal drivers, and the fire pit, where a cook tended a thin cauldron of lentils and greens.

From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri

"We need greener, fairer supply chains that take into account workers' issues and wages."

From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026

Some Europeans are moving in search of cooler weather and greener pastures.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026

But that focus on greener pastures is as persistent as the apparent blood feud between Texas and Tennessee.

From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2026

This is in stark contrast to upland Britain - including much of Scotland's highlands and the Welsh mountains - which has remained closer to normal or, in some places, appear slightly greener.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

But as the geese flew closer, the island’s greener interior came into view.

From "The Wild Robot Protects" by Peter Brown

It ranges from the greenest to the dirtiest, from established technologies to speculative ones, and even includes companies that play tangential roles in the sector.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 24, 2025

In 2007, architect Carl Elefante expressed an idea that has since become a common provocation in the world of architecture: The greenest building is one that’s already built.

From Slate ● Jun. 3, 2025

Despite the greenest possible light, at least one of his 93 NBA field-goal attempts have had to cross Knecht’s “crazy or something like that” threshold, right?

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 17, 2024

We had flown to Kumasi to visit the Department of Painting and Sculpture at KNUST, an expansive campus in the west of the city and probably the greenest university I have ever seen.

From New York Times ● Feb. 5, 2024

I stared about, openmouthed, like the greenest plowboy.

From "The Shakespeare Stealer" by Gary L. Blackwood

Secrets of photosynthesis have been discovered at atomic level, shedding important new light on this plant super-power that greened the earth more than a billion years ago.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 4, 2024

A 2018 study on cleaning-and-greening vacant lots in neighborhoods with residents living below the poverty line found a 29 percent reduction in gun violence around lots that were greened with trees compared to vacant lots.

From National Geographic ● Oct. 9, 2023

At Fort Young, restorations have strengthened and greened the property, and eco-certification efforts began in earnest this year.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 15, 2021

People around greened lots reported feeling less depressed.

From New York Times ● Oct. 8, 2021

Week after week, I returned to Iowa, watching through the plane window as the seasons changed, as the earth slowly greened and the soybean and corn crops grew in ruler-straight lines.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

Grégoire did not comment, but Béchir Saket Bouderbala, a local assemblyman whose remit includes animal welfare and urban greening, said that city hall supported Paris Dog Week, which was organized by local business owners.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026

The other puts a harmless virus into trees to help them resist the citrus greening.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026

So experts said countries across the region should further insulate energy systems against more frequent disruptive weather events by diversifying and greening their grids.

From Barron's ● May 5, 2026

Her priorities have included early education expansion, school greening improvements, literacy through phonics training, protecting immigrant students and focusing more budget resources on the highest-need schools.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026

I did not return to the merry-go-round until the snow was gone and the grass was greening among the stumps.

From "Milkweed" by Jerry Spinelli

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Related Words

• fresh
• grassy
• leafy
• lush
• raw
• tender
• verdant

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