definitions

false color

noun

photography using infrared-sensitive film that produces images in which heat-emitting areas or objects appear red.

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Nearby words

false bread-fruit, false buckthorn, false card, false cast, false cirrus, false color, false colors, false colour, false colours, false conjugate, false consciousness

Origin of false color

First recorded in 1965–70

Related forms

false-col·or, adjective

Definition for false color (2 of 2)

false colors

plural noun

the flag of a country other than one's own, especially when used deceptively: sailing under false colors.
false or deceptive actions or statements; misrepresentation.

Origin of false colors

1565–75, for literal sense
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Idioms and Phrases with false color

false colors

Pretense, misrepresentation, or hypocrisy; deceptive statements or actions. For example, She's sailing under false colors—she claims to be a Republican, but endorses Democratic legislation. This term alludes to the practice of pirate ships sailing under false colors—that is, running a particular flag specifically to lure another vessel close enough to be captured. [Late 1600s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.