sepia

American  

[see-pee-uh] / ˈsi pi ə /

noun

1. a brown pigment obtained from the inklike secretion of various cuttlefish and used with brush or pen in drawing.

2. a drawing made with this pigment.

3. a dark brown.

4. Photography. a print or photograph made in this color.

5. any of several cuttlefish of the genus Sepia, producing a dark fluid used naturally for defense and, by humans, in ink.

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adjective

1. of a brown, grayish brown, or olive brown similar to that of sepia ink.

sepia British  

/ ˈsiːpɪə /

noun

1. a dark reddish-brown pigment obtained from the inky secretion of the cuttlefish

2. any cuttlefish of the genus Sepia

3. a brownish tone imparted to a photograph, esp an early one such as a calotype. It can be produced by first bleaching a print (after fixing) and then immersing it for a short time in a solution of sodium sulphide or of alkaline thiourea

4. a brownish-grey to dark yellowish-brown colour

5. a drawing or photograph in sepia

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adjective

1. of the colour sepia or done in sepia

   a sepia print

Other Word Forms

• sepialike adjective
• sepic adjective

Etymology

Origin of sepia

1560–70; < Latin sēpia cuttlefish, its secretion < Greek sēpía; akin to sêpsis sepsis

Example Sentences

Ostrover hung a sepia photograph of his grandfather’s smoked-fish shop in Manhattan in the early 20th century.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 2, 2026

The light is too harshly angled and full of diodes, too precise, too careful and still somehow not careful enough, not surreal, sepia and tender enough.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2025

Bagpuss would come to life after Emily left the animals alone, with the film then changing from sepia to colour.

From BBC • Feb. 12, 2024

Depictions of roses, a skull, a goat and a Santería evil eye dance around them, illuminated in sepia spotlights and looking like they could have come straight from a deck of tarot cards.

From Washington Times • Nov. 6, 2023

Across his brow a constellation of acne had a new-minted look, its garishness softened by the sepia light.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan