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(=made them red) 4 [C] the colour of a person's skin
showing which race they belong to: people of all colours
(=black, brown, white etc) → see also COLOURED 5 [U]
details or behaviour of a place, thing, or person, that interest
the mind or eye and excite the imagination; character: She
loved the life, noise, and colour of the market. | The lecturer
told a few jokes and anecdotes to add colour to his talk. →
see also LOCAL COLOUR 6 give/lend colour to to make
(something, especially something unusual) appear likely or
true: Her wet hair lent colour to her claim that she had fallen
into the lake. 7 off colour infml not in good health: You look
a little off colour today. 8 see the colour of someone's
money infml to have clear proof that someone has enough
money to pay: I don't trust him to pay us—I want to see the
colour of his money first. 9 people of colour/color people
whose skin is brown, black etc: a conference of writers of
colour → see also COLOURS, OFF COLOUR, PRIMARY COLOUR
colour² BrE || color AmE — v 1 [T] to cause (something) to
have colour, especially with a CRAYON or pencil rather than a
brush: The little boy coloured the picture. | [+obj+adj] She
colours her hair red. 2 [I] to take on colour or change
colour: The leaves have already started to colour; it will soon
be winter. | He coloured with embarrassment. 3 [T] to give a
special effect or feeling to (a person, event etc); influence in
a personal way: Personal feelings coloured his judgment. | a
highly coloured account of his difficulties
colour sthg. ↔ in phr v [T] to put colour into (an area or
shape): The child coloured in the houses, but left the sky white.
colour bar also color line AmE — n the set of laws or social
customs in some places which prevents people of different
colours from mixing freely
colour-blind adj unable to see the difference between (cer-
tain) colours: He's red/green colour-blind. —'colour blind-
ness n [U]
colour code v [T] to mark (several similar items) with
different colours so as to make it easy to see the difference
between them: The tickets were colour-coded according to
price.
col·oured¹ BrE || colored AmE /'kʌləd||-ərd/ adj 1 having
colour, especially as opposed to white, or black and white:
coloured sheets | coloured photographs 2 (in comb.) having the
stated colour: She wore a cream-coloured/multi-coloured
dress. | brightly coloured tropical birds 3 (now usually con-
sidered offensive to black people) belonging to a dark-
skinned race; black → see BLACK (USAGE)
col·oured² BrE || colored AmE — n derog [usually pl.] (now
usually considered offensive to black people) a person
belonging to a dark-skinned race
col·our·fast BrE || colorfast AmE /'kʌləfɑːst||'kʌlərfast/ adj
having colour which will not change or come out in water:
Don't put that shirt in with the rest of the washing – it's not
colourfast. —ness n [U]
col·our·ful BrE || colorful AmE /'kʌləfʊl||-lər-/ adj 1 brightly
coloured; full of colour: a bird with colourful wings 2 excit-
ing the senses or imagination; rich in expressive variety or
detail: a colourful period of history | a colourful character |
his colourful career as an international journalist
col·our·ing BrE || coloring AmE /'kʌlərɪŋ/ n 1 [C;U] a
substance used for giving a special colour to another sub-
stance, especially food; DYE: These tinned beans contain no
artificial colouring. 2 [U] (healthy or ill appearance as
shown by) skin colour; COMPLEXION: People always think I'm
ill because of my colouring.
colouring book BrE || coloring book AmE —n a book full
of pictures that are drawn without colour so that a child can
colour them in
col·our·ist BrE || colorist AmE /'kʌlərɪst/ n 1 someone
whose job is to DYE people's hair (=change the colour) 2 tech
a painter who uses colour itself as a subject of a painting
col·our·ize also -ise BrE || colorize AmE /'kʌləraz/ v [I;T] to
add colour to (an old film that was made in black and
white): talk of colorizing Casablanca
col·our·less BrE || colorless AmE /'kʌlələs||'kʌlər-/
adj 1 without colour: Water is a colourless liquid. 2 dull;
lacking variety, interest, strong personal character etc: a
rather colourless person/town | a colourless existence 3 hav-
ing less than usual colour; pale —ly adv —ness n [U]
col·ours BrE || colors AmE /'kʌləz||-ərz/ n [P] 1 a special
sign, cap BADGE etc worn as a sign of your club, school, team
etc: (BrE) He won his colours (=was chosen for the team) for
football this year. 2 the official flag of a country, ship, part
of the army etc: the regimental colours 3 one's true colours
one's real (especially unpleasant) character, especially when
seen for the first time: I liked him at first, but now he's shown
his true colours/I've seen him in his true colours. → see also
FLYING COLOURS, sail under false colours (SAIL)
'colour scheme n the arrangement of colours in a room,
painting etc: an original/interesting colour scheme
'colour ,supplement also colour supp /'kʌlə ˌsʌplɪ-lər-/
infml — n BrE a magazine printed in colour and given free with
a newspaper, especially a Sunday newspaper
colt /kəʊlt/ n a young male horse → compare FILLY
Colt trademark a type of small gun
colt·ish /'kəʊltɪʃ/ adj often derog playful and lively, especially
in an awkward uncontrolled way —ly adv —ness n [U]
Col·trane, John /kɒl'treɪn||kaʊl-/ (1926-67) a US JAZZ musi-
cian who played the SAXOPHONE and had a great influence
on the development of modern jazz
Coltrane, Rob·bie /'rɒbi'reɪ-/ (1950-) a British film and
television actor who originally worked as a COMEDIAN. He
appeared as the character Fitz in the television programme
Cracker from 1993 to 1996. He has also appeared in the
Harry Potter films and in the James Bond film The World Is
Not Enough.
Co·lum·bi·a¹ /kə'lʌmbiə/ the capital of the US state of
South Carolina
Columbia² → see DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Co·lum·bia 'Pictures also Columbia trademark a US film
company which produces films for cinema and television
Co·lum·bia 'Space ,Shuttle, the a US SPACE SHUTTLE
that flew 27 MISSIONS until it exploded as it was returning to
earth from space in February 2003. All seven of the people
inside were killed, and parts of the spacecraft fell over the
southwestern United States.
Columbia Uni·ver·si·ty a well-respected private university
in New York City, known especially for its school of JOURNAL-
ISM
col·um·bine /'kɒləmbaɪn||'kɑː-/ n a plant with bright
downward-hanging flowers
Columbine a character in old European plays, who is the
woman HARLEQUIN loves
,Columbine 'High School ,massacre an event in
which two teenage boys, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold,
used guns in an attack on their high school in Colorado.
They killed 13 people and injured many more before killing
themselves. The attack led many people to question if the
violence in American popular culture, such as on television,
in music, and on video games, had an influence on what the
boys did.
Co·lum·bo /kə'lʌmbəʊ/ a US television programme about a
character called Lieutenant Columbo, who is a DETECTIVE in
the Los Angeles Police Department. He is known for wearing
a dirty old RAINCOAT.
Co·lum·bus, Chris·to·pher /kə'lʌmbəs, 'krɪstəfə/
(1451-1506) an Italian sailor and EXPLORER who is tradition-
ally thought of as the first European to discover America, in
1492. He arrived in America by accident when he was trying
to find a new way to Asia by sailing west from Spain, having
received money for this journey from the Spanish king and
queen, FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. Many US and British people
know the RHYME
In fourteen hundred and ninety two,
Columbus sailed the ocean blue.
Most people now think that the first discovery of America
by Europeans was about 500 years earlier, by the Norwegian
Leif ERICSSON.
Co'lumbus ,Day a US public holiday held on October 12th
to honour Christopher Columbus
col·umn /'kɒləm||'kɑː-/ n 1 a tall solid upright stone post
used in a building as a support or decoration or standing
alone as a MONUMENT: a graceful Ionic column 2 [(of)] any-
thing similar to a column in shape, appearance, or use: a
column of smoke | to add up a column of figures 3 [+sing/pl.