Did you know?

Click any word in a definition or example to find the entry for that word

blue

 - definition
 
 
 
Close

What are red words?

90% of the time, speakers of English use just 7,500 words in speech and writing. These words appear in red, and are graded with stars. One-star words are frequent, two-star words are more frequent, and three-star words are the most frequent.

Close

Thesaurus

The thesaurus of synonyms and related words is fully integrated into the dictionary entries. Click on the T button in an entry to review the synonyms and related words for that meaning.

more
adjective American English pronunciation: blue /blu/ 
Word Forms
Close
adjectiveblue
comparativebluer
superlativebluest
  1. 1
    something that is blue is the same color as the sky on a clear sunny day. If something is similar to this color, you can say that it is a bluish color

    He looked at her with his pale blue eyes.

    The sky was gloriously blue.

    blue with cold:

    My fingers were turning blue with cold.

  2. 2
    informal feeling slightly sad

    She usually calls her mother when she's feeling blue.

phrases

derived word

blueness

noun [uncountable]

caxirola

a percussion instrument used by football fans which makes a rattling sound when shaken

BuzzWord Article

Word of the Day

emancipation

the process of giving freedom and rights to someone

Open Dictionary

pierce the corporate veil

… the decision to treat the rights and duties of a company as being the same as the rights and duties of its shareholders

add a word

Blog

A must for anyone with an interest in the changing face of language. The Macmillan Dictionary blog explores English as it is spoken around the world today.

global English and language change from our blog