a pale yellow, sometimes reddish or brownish, fossil resin of vegetable origin, translucent, brittle, and capable of gaining a negative electrical charge by friction and of being an excellent insulator: used for making jewelry and other ornamental articles.
the yellowish-brown color of resin.
of the color of amber; yellowish-brown.
amber fields of grain.
made of amber.
amber earrings.
a yellow or yellowish-brown hard translucent fossil resin derived from extinct coniferous trees that occurs in Tertiary deposits and often contains trapped insects. It is used for jewellery, ornaments, etc
( as modifier )
an amber necklace
a strange relic or reminder of the past
a medium to dark brownish-yellow colour, often somewhat orange, similar to that of the resin
( as adjective )
an amber dress
an amber traffic light used as a warning between red and green
Certain trees, especially conifers, produce a sticky substance called resin to protect themselves against insects. Normally, it decays in oxygen through the action of bacteria. However, if the resin happens to fall into wet mud or sand containing little oxygen, it can harden and eventually fossilize, becoming the yellowish, translucent substance known as amber. If any insects or other organisms are trapped in the resin before it hardens, they can be preserved, often in exquisite detail. By studying these preserved organisms, scientists are able learn key facts about life on Earth millions of years ago.
1350–1400; Middle English ambre < Old French < Medieval Latin ambra < Arabic ʿanbar ambergris; confusion of the dissimilar substances perhaps because both were rare, valuable, and found on seacoasts
Amber is a brownish yellow color. Many cats have green eyes but those with amber eyes are likely to have yellow or white fur. Amber is also a translucent golden or honeyed-yellow colored gemstone, often used to make jewelry. That's where the color amber gets its name. Amber comes from the ocean floor — most of it is harvested from the Baltic Sea off the coast of Russia. The most likely origin of amber is the Latin word for "bitter," amarus, as the color yellow was often associated with bitterness and envy.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Taking an alcohol marker, he tinted the lights a soft amber, allowing him to highlight the art in the room without adding harsh overhead lighting.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
This weekend is expected to continue to be hot for many, but only south-east and eastern England will continue to be covered by an amber heat weather warning on Saturday.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
Met Office red and amber extreme heat warnings remain in force with impacts such as transport disruption and heat-related illnesses set to continue.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
Over the 250 years since America’s birth, there have been amber waves of great comic material, veritable fruited plains of satirical fodder.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
Trade was mostly limited to prestige items such as shells, amber and pigments.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
There is an Alaska political strategist named Amber Lee who has supported Peltola in the past.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2026
Amber and yellow heat-health alerts have come into effect across England as the United Kingdom braces for one of the longest-lasting heatwaves since 1976.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
Amber and red heat-health alerts were issued and the Met Office issued a rare red warning for extreme heat at the end of June.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
An Amber Alert has been issued for a 3-month-old boy believed to have been abducted from Northern California.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
Her boyfriend, Liam, and her best friend, Amber, are working there, too —assisting the art and music teachers.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
I would swim early in the morning when the water was still or late at night as the sun set, casting stunning ambers and pinks streaks through the sky.
From BBC ● Mar. 9, 2025
The sunrise ambers and midnight blues of Joshua Cutts’s lighting design illuminate Michael’s states of mind as much as they do time and place.
From New York Times ● Dec. 5, 2023
The set design by Clint Ramos and Miguel Urbino emphasizes depth of field, its white framework a receptive canvas for Linda Cho’s refined midcentury costumes and the warm ambers of David Weiner’s lighting.
From New York Times ● Jun. 22, 2023
Tabasheer seems to stand in the same relation to the mineral kingdom as do ambers and pearls.
From Scientific American Supplement, No. 595, May 28, 1887 by Various
Warm reds and even flame-color can be worn, but ambers, yellows and fawns will be the more harmonious.
From Social Life or, The Manners and Customs of Polite Society by Cooke, Maud C.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
