sepia
[ see-pee-uh ]
/ ˈsi pi ə /
noun
a brown pigment obtained from the inklike secretion of various cuttlefish and used with brush or pen in drawing.
a drawing made with this pigment.
a dark brown.
Photography. a print or photograph made in this color.
any of several cuttlefish of the genus Sepia, producing a dark fluid used naturally for defense and, by humans, in ink.
adjective
of a brown, grayish brown, or olive brown similar to that of sepia ink.
Nearby words
Origin of sepia
Related formsse·pi·a·like, adjectivese·pic [see-pik, sep-ik] /ˈsi pɪk, ˈsɛp ɪk/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for sepia
British Dictionary definitions for sepia
sepia
/ (ˈsiːpɪə) /
noun
a dark reddish-brown pigment obtained from the inky secretion of the cuttlefish
any cuttlefish of the genus Sepia
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
a brownish-grey to dark yellowish-brown colour
a drawing or photograph in sepia
adjective
of the colour sepia or done in sepiaa sepia print
Word Origin for sepia
C16: from Latin: a cuttlefish, from Greek; related to Greek sēpein to make rotten
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for sepia
sepia
"rich brown pigment," 1821, from Italian seppia "cuttlefish" (borrowed with that meaning in English by 1560s), from Latin sepia "cuttlefish," from Greek sepia "cuttlefish," related to sepein "to make rotten" (cf. sepsis). The color was that of brown paint or ink prepared from the fluid secretions of the cuttlefish. Meaning "a sepia drawing" is recorded from 1863.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper