pigment

American  

[pig-muhnt] / ˈpɪg mənt /

noun

• pigments
  plural

1. a dry insoluble substance, usually pulverized, which when suspended in a liquid vehicle becomes a paint, ink, etc.

2. a coloring matter or substance.

3. Biology. any substance whose presence in the tissues or cells of animals or plants colors them.

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verb (used with object)

1. to color; add pigment to.

verb (used without object)

1. to become pigmented; acquire color; develop pigmentation.

   a poor quality of paper that doesn't pigment well.

pigment British  

/ ˈpɪɡmənt /

noun

1. a substance occurring in plant or animal tissue and producing a characteristic colour, such as chlorophyll in green plants and haemoglobin in red blood

2. any substance used to impart colour

3. a powder that is mixed with a liquid to give a paint, ink, etc

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pigment Scientific  

/ pĭg′mənt /

1. 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.

2. A substance or material used as coloring.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• hyperpigmented
  adjective
• nonpigmented
  adjective
• pigmentary
  adjective
• unpigmented
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pigments
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of pigment

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin pigmentum paint, equivalent to pig- (stem of pingere to paint ) + -mentum -ment

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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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pigment pigments

First created in 1980 in the Mojave Desert, the work involved students spreading red, yellow and black pigment in a geometric pattern more than 600 feet in diameter.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

“So it actually is a black pigment that was made by burning ivory,” she said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026

Inside the material, the porous structure scatters light so effectively that it appears intensely white without any added pigment.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026

The statue has been patinated with a pigment refined from Lapis Lazuli, a semi-precious stone that has been used by artists for millennia.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

The sky is full of reddish pigment, but toward the edge, it changes from red into a color my system describes as blue mixed with bits of green.

From "A Rover's Story" by Jasmine Warga

“Most black pigments at that time were made by burning different materials.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026

Instead of adding pigments to produce color or applying persistent chemical coatings to control how surfaces interact with water, the researchers build those properties directly into the material's physical structure.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026

The research also revealed that the pigments Reynolds used contained lead as well as vermilion, carbon black and one or more iron-earth pigments.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

But the clay was dry and there was a colorful palette of pigments in front of me.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026

She loved experimenting with differing amounts of pigments and binders, seeking the clearest, most durable colors.

From "The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian's Art Changed Science" by Joyce Sidman

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Related Words

• coloring
• dye
• stain
• tint

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