English Reference

Word

cyan

US/saɪˈæn/

UK/saɪˈæn/

Definitions

01the colour

B2

n. a bright colour that is a mix of blue and green.

n. a greenish-blue colour, specifically one of the four primary colours in the CMYK printing process.

“The printer is out of cyan ink, so the photos look too red.”

“The graphic designer adjusted the levels of cyan and magenta to achieve the precise shade of purple required for the brand's logo.”

Antonyms

red

02describing a colour

B2

adj. having a bright blue-green colour.

adj. of a colour between blue and green; typically used in technical contexts involving light or ink.

“The tropical water was a beautiful cyan colour under the bright sun.”

“The monitor displayed a sharp cyan glow, indicating that the system was operating within the correct temperature parameters.”

Technical

Synonyms

blue-green

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek κύανος (kúanos), a shade of blue variously described as similar to cornflower, copper carbonate, and lapis lazuli, Mycenaean Greek 𐀓𐀷𐀜 (ku-wa-no), possibly from Hittite [script needed] (kuwannan-, “a precious stone; copper; shade of blue”). Compare modern Greek κυανός (kyanós), also used for cyan.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry

Level
B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency
Occasional
Updated

Scan code

englishreference.com/q/cyan

English Reference