navy blue

Meanings

1. 1noununcountable

   A very dark shade of blue, close to black, often used for uniforms and formal clothes.

   Grammar: Uncountable when naming the color: 'She prefers navy blue to black.'

   Patterns

   • dressed in navy blue
   • painted navy blue

   She wore navy blue to the interview because it looked serious and smart.

   The wall was painted navy blue, which made the room feel cozy.

   Navy blue goes well with white and gray.

2. 2adjectivenot comparable

   Of a very dark blue color.

   Grammar: Goes before a noun or after 'be': a navy blue coat, the coat is navy blue.

   Patterns

   • a navy blue something

   He bought a navy blue suit for his cousin's wedding.

   The school uniform is a navy blue sweater and gray trousers.

   Her navy blue car looks almost black at night.

Common combinations

a navy blue suit

He looked sharp in a navy blue suit.

navy blue uniform

The pilots wore a navy blue uniform with gold buttons.

dark navy blue

The sky turned a dark navy blue before the storm.

painted navy blue

They painted the front door navy blue.

navy blue and white

The flag was navy blue and white.

Synonyms and how they differ

navy

This is the common short form and means the same, but it can be confused with the military force of that name.

midnight blue

This is slightly deeper and more poetic, often used in fashion and decorating.

dark blue

This is a general phrase for any deep blue, while navy blue has a fairly fixed, formal shade.

indigo

This leans toward purple and is a different color in the spectrum, not a uniform shade.

Opposites

Word family

navy noun

a country's sea military force, which gave the color its name

naval adjective

relating to a navy

blue adjective

the color of a clear sky

bluish adjective

somewhat blue

Commonly confused: navy blue or royal blue? navy blue or midnight blue?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “navy blue”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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