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yellow

[ yel-oh ]
/ ˈyɛl oʊ /
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noun
adjective, yel·low·er, yel·low·est.
verb (used with or without object)
to make or become yellow: Yellow the sheets with dye. The white stationery had yellowed with age.
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Origin of yellow

First recorded before 900; 1895–1900 for def. 9; Middle English yelou (adjective and noun), Old English geolo, geolu (adjective); cognate with Dutch geel, German gelb, Latin helvus “pale-yellow”; akin to Old Norse gulr

usage note for yellow

It is perceived as insulting to use yellow to describe a person of Asian or mixed racial origin, as in the terms yellow peril and high yellow.

OTHER WORDS FROM yellow

yel·low·ly, adverbyel·low·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use yellow in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for yellow

yellow
/ (ˈjɛləʊ) /

noun
adjective
verb
to make or become yellow
See also yellows

Derived forms of yellow

yellowish, adjectiveyellowly, adverbyellowness, nounyellowy, adjective

Word Origin for yellow

Old English geolu; related to Old Saxon, Old High German gelo, Old Norse gulr, Latin helvus
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
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