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xanthous

[zan-thuh s]
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adjective
  1. yellow.
  2. yellowish.
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Origin of xanthous

1820–30; < Greek xanth(ós) yellow + -ous
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for xanthous

xanthous

adjective
  1. of, relating to, or designating races with yellowish hair and a light complexion
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for xanthous

adj.

1829, from Greek xanthos "yellow," of unknown origin. Prefix form xantho- is used in many scientific words; cf. xanthein (1857) "soluble yellow coloring matter in flowers," Huxley's Xanthochroi (1867) "blond, light-skinned races of Europe" (with okhros "pale"), xanthophyll (1838) "yellow coloring matter in autumn leaves."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper