dye

American  

[dahy] / daɪ /

noun

1. a coloring material or matter.

2. a liquid containing coloring matter, for imparting a particular hue to cloth, paper, etc.

3. color or hue, especially as produced by dyeing.

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verb (used with object)

dyed, dyeing

1. to color or stain; treat with a dye; color (cloth, hair, etc.) with a substance containing coloring matter.

   to dye a dress green.

2. to impart (color) by means of a dye.

   The coloring matter dyed green.

verb (used without object)

dyed, dyeing

1. to impart color, as a dye.

   This brand dyes well.

2. to become colored or absorb color when treated with a dye.

   This cloth dyes easily.

idioms

1. of the deepest / blackest dye, of the most extreme or the worst sort.

   a prevaricator of the blackest dye.

dye British  

/ daɪ /

noun

1. a staining or colouring substance, such as a natural or synthetic pigment

2. a liquid that contains a colouring material and can be used to stain fabrics, skins, etc

3. the colour or shade produced by dyeing

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verb

1. (tr) to impart a colour or stain to (something, such as fabric or hair) by or as if by the application of a dye

Other Word Forms

• dyable
  adjective
• dyeable
  adjective
• dyer
  noun
• redye
  verb (used with object)
• undyable
  adjective
• undyed
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of dye

before 1000; Middle English dien, Old English dēagian, derivative of dēag a dye

Explanation

Dye is a substance that's used to change the color of whatever it's applied to. You can use hair dye to change your light brown hair to deep, dark purple. Dye is used on fabrics, hair, yarn and other fibers, clothing, and food, among other things. When you apply dye to something, you dye it. If you're baking a birthday cake for your friend who loves the color orange, you might use food coloring — a type of dye — to dye the vanilla frosting orange. The Old English root of dye is deah, "a color or hue," which is possibly related to deagol, "secret, hidden, or dark."

Example Sentences

A 2022 color additive petition filed by two dozen food safety and health advocates found that Red Dye No. 3 caused cancer in laboratory male rats exposed to high levels of the dye.

From Salon • Apr. 11, 2026

The water-soluble, FDA-approved dye used by UltraGreen.ai for fluorescence imaging is considered a generic drug and falls under the current exemption, they say.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

A man was rushed to hospital after his skin turned blue - only for medics to discover it was dye from his new bed sheets.

From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026

The microscope then directs a beam of light at that specific cell, permanently tagging it with the photoconvertible dye.

From Science Daily • Mar. 10, 2026

“Mrs. Callahan, is Lucy allowed to dye her hair?”

From "The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl" by Stacy McAnulty

Related Words

• pigment
• stain
• tint