purple

American  

[pur-puhl] / ˈpɜr pəl /

noun

1. any color having components of both red and blue, such as lavender, especially one deep in tone.

2. cloth or clothing of this hue, especially as formerly worn distinctively by persons of imperial, royal, or other high rank.

3. the rank or office of a cardinal.

4. the office of a bishop.

5. imperial, regal, or princely rank or position.

6. deep red; crimson.

7. any of several nymphalid butterflies, as Basilarchia astyanax red-spotted purple, having blackish wings spotted with red, or Basilarchia arthemis banded purple, or white admiral, having brown wings banded with white.

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adjective

purpler, purplest

1. of the color purple.

2. imperial, regal, or princely.

3. brilliant or showy.

4. full of exaggerated literary devices and effects; marked by excessively ornate rhetoric.

   a purple passage in a novel.

5. profane or shocking, as language.

6. relating to or noting political or ideological diversity.

   purple politics; ideologically purple areas of the country.

verb (used with or without object)

purpled, purpling

1. to make or become purple.

idioms

1. born in / to the purple, of royal or exalted birth.

   Those born to the purple are destined to live in the public eye.

purple British  

/ ˈpɜːpəl /

noun

1. any of various colours with a hue lying between red and blue and often highly saturated; a nonspectral colour

2. a dye or pigment producing such a colour

3. cloth of this colour, often used to symbolize royalty or nobility

4. high rank; nobility

5. 1. the official robe of a cardinal

   2. the rank, office, or authority of a cardinal as signified by this

6. bishops collectively

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adjective

1. of the colour purple

2. (of writing) excessively elaborate or full of imagery

   purple prose

3. noble or royal

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• purpleness
  noun
• purplish
  adjective
• purply
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of purple

First recorded before 1000; Middle English purpel (noun and adjective), Old English purple (adjective), variant of purpure, from Latin purpura “kind of shellfish yielding purple dye, the dye, cloth so dyed,” from Greek porphýra; cf. purpure, porphyry

Explanation

Purple is a shade that's a mixture of red and blue. If you are eating a grape Popsicle, get ready to spend a while with a purple tongue and lips. The Greek root of purple is porphyra, which was the name of the shellfish from which purple dye was made. Long ago, only royalty could wear — and afford the dye for — purple clothing. If the setting sun purples the sky, the light is making the horizon appear to be colored purple, just as a bruise purples your skin. Purple prose is a literary term that refers to overly flowery or exaggerated writing.

Example Sentences

Musician Morris Day, who once collaborated with Prince and portrayed his musical rival in the movie "Purple Rain," also denied involvement with the event.

From Barron's • May 28, 2026

In a sign of Diamond’s growing renown at the time, “Kentucky Woman” was covered within a year by both Waylon Jennings and Deep Purple.

From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026

Purple call outs tend to stay around the seven-minute target, and have ranged from six minutes 27 seconds to eight minutes nine seconds over the years.

From BBC • Apr. 2, 2026

As a marine, Mueller earned a Bronze Star for valor and a Purple Heart for wounds received in combat.

From Barron's • Mar. 21, 2026

“Maybe you’re better off at Camp Purple Haze. I hate to think what would happen to you in the real world.”

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman

Related Words

• color
• lavender
• lilac
• mauve
• periwinkle
• plum
• violet