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lily-white
[ adjective lil-ee-hwahyt, -wahyt; noun lil-ee-hwahyt, -wahyt ]
/ adjective ˈlɪl iˈʰwaɪt, -ˈwaɪt; noun ˈlɪl iˌʰwaɪt, -ˌwaɪt /
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adjective
white as a lily: soft lily-white skin.
pure; untouched by corruption or imperfection; above reproach: He tries to pass himself off as some sort of lily-white saint, but he's not.
designating or pertaining to any faction, organization, or group opposing the inclusion of Black people, especially in political or social life.
noun
a member of a lily-white organization, especially a member of a former faction of the Republican Party in the South opposed to the inclusion of African Americans in the party or in political life in general.Compare black and tan (def. 3).
OTHER WORDS FOR lily-white
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Origin of lily-white
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English lylie-whyt
Words nearby lily-white
lily-of-the-Nile, lily of the valley, lily pad, lily-trotter, lilyturf, lily-white, lim., Lima, lima bean, limacine, limaçon
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use lily-white in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for lily-white
lily-white
adjective
of a pure whitelily-white skin
informal pure; irreproachable
US informal
- discriminating against Black peoplea lily-white club
- racially segregated
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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