orange
- a globose, reddish-yellow, bitter or sweet, edible citrus fruit.
- any white-flowered, evergreen citrus trees of the genus Citrus, bearing this fruit, as C. aurantium (bitter orange, Seville orange, or sour orange) and C. sinensis (sweet orange), cultivated in warm countries.
- any of several other citrus trees, as the trifoliate orange.
- any of several trees or fruits resembling an orange.
- a color between yellow and red in the spectrum, an effect of light with a wavelength between 590 and 610 nm; reddish yellow.
- Art. a secondary color that has been formed by the mixture of red and yellow pigments.
- of or relating to the orange.
- made or prepared with oranges or orangelike flavoring: orange sherbet.
- of the color orange; reddish-yellow.
Origin of orange
Orange
- a member of a European princely family ruling in the United Kingdom from 1688 to 1694 and in the Netherlands since 1815.
- a river in the Republic of South Africa, flowing W from Lesotho to the Atlantic. 1300 miles (2095 km) long.
- a former small principality of W Europe: now in the SE part of France.
- a city in SW California, near Los Angeles.
- a city in NE New Jersey, near Newark.
- a town in SE France, near Avignon: Roman ruins.
- a city in SE Texas.
- a town in S Connecticut.
- Fort. Fort Orange.
Examples from the Web for oranges
Contemporary Examples
Duarte owns a small plot of land where she grazes cattle and grows beans, maize, bananas, and oranges.
Comparing scotch blends with malts is like comparing apples and oranges.
Admittedly, this argument verges on comparing apples to oranges.
It Costs a Lot of Money to Look This Cheap: Inside the Weird World of Celebrity Clone SurgeryKevin Fallon
July 24, 2014
At best, contrasting the campaign to the government was akin to “comparing apples and oranges.”
Comparing Iraq and Afghanistan with Syria is apples and oranges, Kaufman argued.
Historical Examples
The russet of oranges is caused by the bite of an insect on the skin.
Woman's Institute Library of Cookery, Vol. 5Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences
Their skin does not cling so closely as the skin of oranges.
Woman's Institute Library of Cookery, Vol. 5Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences
Describe the preparation of oranges for salads and desserts.
Woman's Institute Library of Cookery, Vol. 5Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences
Weigh them, and allow to each pound of oranges a pound of loaf-sugar.
Directions for Cookery, in its Various BranchesEliza Leslie
Mrs. Blair, do you ever cut up bananas and oranges together?
Meadow GrassAlice Brown
orange
- any of several citrus trees, esp Citrus sinensis (sweet orange) and the Seville orange, cultivated in warm regions for their round edible fruitSee also tangerine (def. 1)
- the fruit of any of these trees, having a yellowish-red bitter rind and segmented juicy fleshSee also navel orange
- (as modifier)orange peel
- the hard wood of any of these trees
- any of a group of colours, such as that of the skin of an orange, that lie between red and yellow in the visible spectrum in the approximate wavelength range 620–585 nanometres
- a dye or pigment producing these colours
- orange cloth or clothingdressed in orange
- any of several trees or herbaceous plants that resemble the orange, such as mock orange
- of the colour orange
Word Origin
Orange1
- (ˈɒrɪndʒ) a river in S Africa, rising in NE Lesotho and flowing generally west across the South African plateau to the Atlantic: the longest river in South Africa. Length: 2093 km (1300 miles)
- (French ɔrɑ̃ʒ) a town in SE France: a small principality in the Middle Ages, the descendants of which formed the House of Orange. Pop: 27 989 (1999)Ancient name: Arausio (əˈraʊsɪəʊ)
Orange2
- a princely family of Europe. Its possessions, originally centred in S France, passed in 1544 to the count of Nassau, who became William I of Orange and helped to found the United Provinces of the Netherlands. Since 1815 it has been the name of the reigning house of the Netherlands. It was the ruling house of Great Britain and Ireland under William III and Mary (1689–94) and under William III as sole monarch (1694–1702)
- (modifier) of or relating to the Orangemen
- (modifier) of or relating to the royal dynasty of Orange
Word Origin and History for oranges
orange
n.
c.1300, of the fruit, from Old French orange, orenge (12c., Modern French orange), from Medieval Latin pomum de orenge, from Italian arancia, originally narancia (Venetian naranza), alteration of Arabic naranj, from Persian narang, from Sanskrit naranga-s "orange tree," of uncertain origin. Not used as a color word until 1540s.
Loss of initial n- probably due to confusion with definite article (e.g. une narange, una narancia), but perhaps influenced by French or "gold." The name of the town of Orange in France (see Orangemen) perhaps was deformed by the name of the fruit. Orange juice is attested from 1723.
The tree's original range probably was northern India. The Persian orange, grown widely in southern Europe after its introduction in Italy 11c., was bitter; sweet oranges were brought to Europe 15c. from India by Portuguese traders and quickly displaced the bitter variety, but only Modern Greek still seems to distinguish the bitter (nerantzi) from the sweet (portokali "Portuguese") orange. Portuguese, Spanish, Arab, and Dutch sailors planted citrus trees along trade routes to prevent scurvy. On his second voyage in 1493, Christopher Columbus brought the seeds of oranges, lemons and citrons to Haiti and the Caribbean. Introduced in Florida (along with lemons) in 1513 by Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon. Introduced to Hawaii 1792.
Idioms and Phrases with oranges
oranges
see apples and oranges.