blue

blue  (bl)

n.

1. The hue of that portion of the visible spectrum lying between green and indigo, evoked in the human observer by radiant energy with wavelengths of approximately 420 to 490 nanometers; any of a group of colors that may vary in lightness and saturation, whose hue is that of a clear daytime sky; one of the additive or light primaries; one of the psychological primary hues.

2.

a. A pigment or dye imparting this hue.

b. Bluing.

3.

a. An object having this hue.

b. Dress or clothing of this hue: The ushers wore blue.

4.

a. A person who wears a blue uniform.

b. blues A dress blue uniform, especially that of the U.S. Army.

5. often Blue

a. A member of the Union Army in the Civil War.

b. The Union Army.

6. A bluefish.

7. A small blue butterfly of the family Lycaenidae.

8.

a. The sky.

b. The sea.

adj. blu·er, blu·est

1. Of the color blue.

2. Bluish or having parts that are blue or bluish, as the blue spruce and the blue whale.

3. Having a gray or purplish color, as from cold or contusion.

4. Wearing blue.

5.

a. Gloomy; depressed. See Synonyms at depressed.

b. Dismal; dreary: a blue day.

6. Puritanical; strict.

7. Aristocratic; patrician.

8. Indecent; risqué: a blue joke; a blue movie.

tr. & intr.v. blued, blu·ing, blues

To make or become blue.

Idioms:

blue in the face

At the point of extreme exasperation: I argued with them until I was blue in the face.

into the blue

At a far distance; into the unknown: spontaneously take a trip into the blue.

out of the blue

1. From an unexpected or unforeseen source: criticism that came out of the blue.

2. At a completely unexpected time: a long-unseen friend who appeared out of the blue.

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[Middle English blue, bleu, from Old French bleu, of Germanic origin; see bhel-¹ in Indo-European roots.]

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bluely adv.

blueness n.

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blue

Noun

1. the colour of a clear unclouded sky

2. anything blue, such as blue clothing or blue paint: she is clothed in blue

3. a sportsman who represents or has represented Oxford or Cambridge University

4. Brit informal a Tory

5. Austral & NZ slang an argument or fight

6. Also: (bluey) Austral & NZ slang a court summons

7. Austral & NZ informal a mistake

8. out of the blue unexpectedly

Adjective

[bluer, bluest]

1. of the colour blue; of the colour of a clear unclouded sky

2. (of the flesh) having a purple tinge from cold

3. depressed or unhappy

4. pornographic: blue movies

Verb

blueing or bluing, blued

1. to make or become blue or bluer

2. Old-fashioned, informal to spend extravagantly or wastefully: I consoled myself by blueing my royalty cheque

See also blues [Old French bleu]

blueness n

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	blue - blue color or pigment; resembling the color of the clear sky in the daytime; "he had eyes of bright blue" blueness chromatic color, chromatic colour, spectral color, spectral colour - a color that has hue azure, cerulean, lazuline, sky-blue, sapphire - a light shade of blue powder blue - a pale blue color with grey in it steel blue - a greyish blue color Prussian blue - a dark greenish-blue color dark blue, navy blue, navy - a dark shade of blue cobalt blue, greenish blue, peacock blue, aqua, aquamarine, turquoise - a shade of blue tinged with green purplish blue, royal blue - a shade of blue tinged with purple ultramarine - a vivid blue to purple-blue color
	2.	blue - blue clothing; "she was wearing blue" article of clothing, clothing, habiliment, wearable, vesture, wear - a covering designed to be worn on a person's body
	3.	blue - any organization or party whose uniforms or badges are blue; "the Union army was a vast blue" organization, organisation - a group of people who work together Union Army - the northern army during the American Civil War
	4.	blue - the sky as viewed during daylight; "he shot an arrow into the blue" blue air, blue sky, wild blue yonder sky - the atmosphere and outer space as viewed from the earth
	5.	blue - used to whiten laundry or hair or give it a bluish tinge blueing, bluing dye, dyestuff - a usually soluble substance for staining or coloring e.g. fabrics or hair
	6.	blue - the sodium salt of amobarbital that is used as a barbiturate; used as a sedative and a hypnotic amobarbital sodium, Amytal, blue angel, blue devil amobarbital - a barbiturate with sedative and hypnotic effects; used to relieve insomnia and as an anticonvulsant
	7.	blue - any of numerous small butterflies of the family Lycaenidae lycaenid, lycaenid butterfly - any of various butterflies of the family Lycaenidae genus Lycaena, Lycaena - type genus of the Lycaenidae; small slender butterflies with upper surface of wings usually metallic blue or green or copper
Verb	1.	blue - turn blue discolour, discolor, color, colour - change color, often in an undesired manner; "The shirts discolored"
Adj.	1.	blue - of the color intermediate between green and violet; having a color similar to that of a clear unclouded sky; "October's bright blue weather"- Helen Hunt Jackson; "a blue flame"; "blue haze of tobacco smoke" blueish, bluish chromatic - being or having or characterized by hue
	2.	blue - used to signify the Union forces in the American Civil War (who wore blue uniforms); "a ragged blue line" northern - in or characteristic of a region of the United States north of (approximately) the Mason-Dixon line; "Northern liberals"; "northern industry"; "northern cities"
	3.	blue - filled with melancholy and despondency ; "gloomy at the thought of what he had to face"; "gloomy predictions"; "a gloomy silence"; "took a grim view of the economy"; "the darkening mood"; "lonely and blue in a strange city"; "depressed by the loss of his job"; "a dispirited and resigned expression on her face"; "downcast after his defeat"; "feeling discouraged and downhearted" down in the mouth, downhearted, low-spirited, gloomy, downcast, dispirited, depressed, grim, down, low dejected - affected or marked by low spirits; "is dejected but trying to look cheerful"
	4.	blue - characterized by profanity or cursing; "foul-mouthed and blasphemous"; "blue language"; "profane words" profane, blasphemous dirty - (of behavior or especially language) characterized by obscenity or indecency; "dirty words"; "a dirty old man"; "dirty books and movies"; "boys telling dirty jokes"; "has a dirty mouth"
	5.	blue - suggestive of sexual impropriety; "a blue movie"; "blue jokes"; "he skips asterisks and gives you the gamy details"; "a juicy scandal"; "a naughty wink"; "naughty words"; "racy anecdotes"; "a risque story"; "spicy gossip" gamey, gamy, naughty, risque, spicy, racy, juicy sexy - marked by or tending to arouse sexual desire or interest; "feeling sexy"; "sexy clothes"; "sexy poses"; "a sexy book"; "sexy jokes"
	6.	blue - belonging to or characteristic of the nobility or aristocracy; "an aristocratic family"; "aristocratic Bostonians"; "aristocratic government"; "a blue family"; "blue blood"; "the blue-blooded aristocracy"; "of gentle blood"; "patrician landholders of the American South"; "aristocratic bearing"; "aristocratic features"; "patrician tastes" aristocratic, aristocratical, blue-blooded, patrician, gentle noble - of or belonging to or constituting the hereditary aristocracy especially as derived from feudal times; "of noble birth"
	7.	blue - morally rigorous and strict; "the puritan work ethic"; "puritanic distaste for alcohol"; "she was anything but puritanical in her behavior" puritanic, puritanical nonindulgent, strict - characterized by strictness, severity, or restraint
	8.	blue - causing dejection; "a blue day"; "the dark days of the war"; "a week of rainy depressing weather"; "a disconsolate winter landscape"; "the first dismal dispiriting days of November"; "a dark gloomy day"; "grim rainy weather" dismal, drear, dreary, disconsolate, gloomy, dingy, drab, sorry, grim, dark cheerless, depressing, uncheerful - causing sad feelings of gloom and inadequacy; "the economic outlook is depressing"; "something cheerless about the room"; "a moody and uncheerful person"; "an uncheerful place"

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blue

adjective 1. depressed, low, sad, unhappy, fed up, gloomy, dismal, melancholy, glum, dejected, despondent, downcast, down in the dumps (informal) down in the mouth, low-spirited, down-hearted << OPPOSITE happy

adjective 2. smutty, dirty, naughty, obscene, indecent, vulgar, lewd, risqué, X-rated (informal) bawdy, near the knuckle (informal) << OPPOSITE respectable

plural noun 3. depression, gloom, melancholy, unhappiness, despondency, the hump Brit. (informal) dejection, moodiness, low spirits, the dumps (informal) doldrums, gloominess, glumness

Translations

blue [bluː] adj → azul;

blue film → película porno;

blue joke → chiste verde;

once in a blue moon → de higos a brevas;

to come out of the blue (fig) → ser completamente inesperado see also blues

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blue [bluː] adj → bleu(e) (= depressed); triste;

blue film/joke → film m/histoire f pornographique;

(only) once in a blue moon → tous les trente-six du mois;

out of the blue (fig) → à l'improviste, sans qu'on s'y attende

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blue [bluː] adj → blau;

(depressed) → deprimiert, niedergeschlagen

n out of the blue (fig) → aus heiterem Himmel;

blues n (Mus): the blues → der Blues;

blue film → Pornofilm m;

blue joke → schlüpfriger Witz m;

(only) once in a blue moon → (nur) alle Jubeljahre einmal;

to have the blues → deprimiert or niedergeschlagen sein

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blue [bluː] adj → azzurro/a, celeste;

(darker) → blu inv;

blue film/joke → film/barzelletta pornografico(a);

(only) once in a blue moon → a ogni morte di papa;

out of the blue (fig) → all'improvviso see also blues