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Meaning & use

melanated skin

noun·Everydayinformal

Last updated

UK/ˈmelənəɪtɪd ˈskɪn/
US/ˈmelənəɪtɪd ˈskɪn/

Meaning

  1. noununcountableinformal

    Skin that has a high level of melanin, giving it a darker tone, often used in a positive way in everyday and online speech.

    Grammar: Uncountable: melanated skin needs sun protection too.

    Patterns

    • care for melanated skin
    • melanated skin tones

    The brand sells makeup designed for melanated skin.

    Dermatologists note that melanated skin can still burn.

    She shared a skincare routine for melanated skin.

Common combinations

care for melanated skin
The blog shows how to care for melanated skin in winter.
melanated skin tones
The foundation range includes many melanated skin tones.
glowing melanated skin
She admired the glowing melanated skin of the model.
protect melanated skin
Doctors say you should still protect melanated skin from the sun.

Synonyms and how they differ

dark skin
Dark skin is the plain, widely understood description, whereas melanated skin is informal and often celebratory.
deep skin tones
Deep skin tones is common in beauty marketing and sounds more neutral than melanated.
brown skin
Brown skin is a general color description, but it is not tied to the idea of melanin.

Opposites

fair skin

Word family

melanin noun
the natural pigment that colors skin, hair and eyes
melanated adjective
informal word for having a lot of melanin
melanoma noun
a serious type of skin cancer
melanocyte noun
a skin cell that makes melanin

Commonly confused: melanated skin or melanoma?

melanated skin vs melanoma

Melanoma is a form of skin cancer and is not a skin tone; the words share a root but not a meaning.

Practice

What does melanated skin refer to?

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