coloring

[kuhl-er-ing]

noun

1. the act or method of applying color.

2. appearance as to color.

   healthy coloring.

3. a substance used to color something.

   food coloring made from vegetable dyes.

4. aspect or tone.

   The ethical coloring of the story balanced the rawness of its language.

5. specious appearance; show.

Other Word Forms

• noncoloring adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of coloring¹

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; color, -ing ¹

Example Sentences

The retail giant plans to nix ingredients including titanium dioxide, a food coloring, and azodicarbonamide, used to help bread rise consistently.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Barbecue flavors will be reformulated to remove artificial coloring used to give the chips their signature red-brown color.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

From the start, “The Gilded Age” has taken care to authentically depict Peggy’s narrative trajectory without denying the same juicy intrigues coloring other characters’ lives.

Read more on Salon

Officials also warn that the blue coloring may not always be present in animals that have been exposed.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Her name Moo-deng, which means “red pork” in Thai, was chosen by public vote and nods to her reddish-brown coloring.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• complexion 
• shading 

When To Use

Spelling tips for coloring

The word coloring is hard to spell for two reasons. First, it can be tempting to use a double l or double r. Second, in British English, the word is spelled with a u (colouring), unlike in American English. How to spell coloring: When it comes to color, keep it simple. Too much color, and too many letters, is distracting. You don't need any extra letters, like a double l, double r, or u. Then, you add the suffix -ing to the base word color to form coloring.