annatto
Americannoun
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Also called lipstick tree. a small tree, Bixa orellana, of tropical America.
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Also arnatto a yellowish-red dye obtained from the pulp enclosing the seeds of this tree, used for coloring fabrics, butter, varnish, etc.
noun
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a small tropical American tree, Bixa orellana, having red or pinkish flowers and pulpy seeds that yield a dye: family Bixaceae
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the yellowish-red dye obtained from the pulpy outer layer of the coat of the seeds of this tree, used for colouring fabrics, butter, varnish, etc
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of annatto
Borrowed into English from Carib around 1675–85
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Crafted in the U.K. by a team of “expert cheesemakers,” TJ’s Shropshire Blue English Cheese is made with pasteurized cow’s milk, vegetarian-friendly microbial enzyme and annatto, which gives the cheese a beautiful pale orange color.
From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2025
They'll also add natural coloring agents such as beetroot, annatto, caramel and vegetable juices that make plant-based alternatives look more like the color of traditional meat.
From Salon ● Nov. 25, 2024
Some use an achiote paste, with ground annatto seeds.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 16, 2021
I might need to use a bell pepper instead of ají dulce, or paprika instead of annatto.
From New York Times ● Mar. 22, 2021
She took her meals to her bedroom and annatto water for her to wash in and she kept her up to date on everything that happened in Macondo.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
