reddish-purple

Meanings

1. 1adjectivecomparable

   Of a color that is mostly purple with a noticeable red tint, like some plums or wine.

   Grammar: Usually written with a hyphen before a noun: a reddish-purple dress; it can also follow a verb: the sky turned reddish-purple.

   Patterns

   • reddish-purple in color
   • turn reddish-purple

   The sky turned reddish-purple just after the sun went down.

   She wore a reddish-purple scarf that matched her lipstick.

   The bruise had faded from black to a reddish-purple.

2. 2noununcountable

   A shade of purple that leans toward red.

   Grammar: Used without an article when it names the color: painted in reddish-purple.

   Patterns

   • a shade of reddish-purple

   The walls were painted in a deep reddish-purple.

   The flowers range from pink to reddish-purple.

Common combinations

reddish-purple flowers

Reddish-purple flowers lined the garden path.

reddish-purple dye

The cloth was colored with a reddish-purple dye from berries.

reddish-purple hue

The wine had a rich reddish-purple hue.

reddish-purple sunset

We watched a reddish-purple sunset from the hill.

turn reddish-purple

His face turned reddish-purple with effort.

Synonyms and how they differ

magenta

Magenta names one specific bright reddish-purple, while reddish-purple covers many shades.

plum

Plum suggests a darker, richer shade of the color, like the fruit's skin.

mauve

Mauve is paler and softer, leaning more toward lilac than red.

maroon

Maroon is a dark brownish red, so it has much less purple than reddish-purple.

Word family

reddish adjective

somewhat red

purple adjective

of a color between red and blue

purplish adjective

somewhat purple

purplish-red adjective

red with a purple tint, the reverse balance of reddish-purple

Commonly confused: reddish-purple or purplish-red?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “reddish-purple”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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