anil
[an-l]
- a West Indian shrub, Indigofera suffruticosa, of the legume family, having elongated clusters of small, reddish-yellow flowers and yielding indigo.
- indigo; deep blue.
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Origin of anil
1575–85; < Portuguese < Arabic an-nīl, equivalent to al the + nīl indigo < Sanskrit nīlī indigo (nīl(a) dark blue + -ī feminine noun suffix)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for anil
Contemporary Examples
And there was in fact somebody who fainted—Anil Kumar, a former McKinsey & Co. executive vice president.
Charles Gasparino Details Insider-Trading Investigations in New Book, ‘Circle of Friends’William O’Connor
July 3, 2013
Historical Examples
Putting into Acapulco, they found a bark laden with cocoas and anil.
Notable VoyagersW.H.G. Kingston and Henry Frith
Anil, an′il, n. a plant from whose leaves and stalks indigo is made.
anil
- a leguminous West Indian shrub, Indigofera suffruticosa: a source of indigoAlso called: indigo
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Word Origin
C16: from Portuguese, from Arabic an-nīl, the indigo, from Sanskrit nīla dark blue
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for anil
n.
West Indian shrub, 1580s, from French or Portuguese anil (see aniline).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper