pigment
Americannoun
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a dry insoluble substance, usually pulverized, which when suspended in a liquid vehicle becomes a paint, ink, etc.
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a coloring matter or substance.
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Biology. any substance whose presence in the tissues or cells of animals or plants colors them.
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
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a substance occurring in plant or animal tissue and producing a characteristic colour, such as chlorophyll in green plants and haemoglobin in red blood
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any substance used to impart colour
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a powder that is mixed with a liquid to give a paint, ink, etc
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An organic compound that gives a characteristic color to plant or animal tissues and is involved in vital processes. Chlorophyll, which gives a green color to plants, and hemoglobin, which gives blood its red color, are examples of pigments.
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A substance or material used as coloring.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of pigment
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin pigmentum paint, equivalent to pig- (stem of pingere to paint ) + -mentum -ment
Explanation
Something's color is its pigment. Technically, all living things have a natural pigment — leaves have a green pigment for example — but the word is more generally applied to human skin color. The other, more technical, use of pigment refers to the substance, usually a powder, that is added to a liquid to give it its color. For example, ultramarine paint is made from a crushed blue silicate that mixed with oil produces a brilliant blue tone. Other pigments were achieved in less pleasant ways. The bright yellow of many Indian paintings? Cow's urine. The red of medieval ox-blood walls? You guessed it.
Vocabulary lists containing pigment
Stroke of Genius: Words About Painting
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Unit 2: Evolution
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This Week In Words: Current Events Vocab for January 30–February 5, 2021
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
WSJ | Buy Side: This Chanel skin tint features pigment droplets suspended in a water-gel formula to enhance your skin’s appearance.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 4, 2026
Scientists can estimate a plant's metabolic activity by examining its chlorophyll, the green pigment that allows plants to carry out photosynthesis.
From Science Daily • Mar. 6, 2026
Crucially, the artist did more than simply spray pigment around a hand pressed to the wall, the researchers say.
From BBC • Jan. 21, 2026
Its provenance was certified through methods including X-ray imaging and pigment analysis, he added.
From Barron's • Nov. 30, 2025
His paintings are great impastos of pigment: chrome yellow, Prussian blue, vermilion, carmine, very light cinnabar green, emerald green, Veronese green, orange, lemon chrome yellow, geranium lake, silver white, zinc white....
From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
