lava
n.-
1 volcanic rock (n.) B1 Intermediate Sciencethe extremely hot, liquid rock that flows out of a volcano.
molten rock that has breached the Earth's surface through a volcanic vent or fissure.
ExampleThe red-hot lava flowed slowly down the side of the mountain toward the sea.
ExampleGeologists monitored the viscosity of the lava as it advanced toward the abandoned village, noting its unusual chemical composition.
UsageUncountable when referring to the substance; countable when referring to specific flows or types of rock.
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2 a colour (n.) C1 Advanced Literarya bright, intense shade of orange-red.
a vivid, high-saturation shade of red or orange-red inspired by the appearance of molten rock.
ExampleThe sky turned a deep lava red as the sun began to set.
ExampleThe designer chose a palette of charcoal and lava to evoke a sense of raw, elemental energy in the branding.
From Italian, from Neapolitan and Sicilian lava (“lava; downpour overflowing the streets”), likely from Latin lābēs (“a fall; a collapse; subsidence”); compare lābīna (“landslide”). A supposed relation with lavare (“to wash”) is now widely discredited, nor is there probably any relation with Arabic لابة (lāba, “black volcanic rock”). Alternatively, the Romance words are connected with Provençal lavo, lauvo (“flat stone”), from a Vulgar Latin source borrowed from a Celtic language such as Gaulish lawā, but ultimately of obscure origin; see Proto-Celtic līwos for details.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Last updated June 20, 2026