Word
tawny
US/ˈtɑni/
UK/tˈɔːni/
Definition
adj. having a brownish-yellow color, like the skin of a horse or a certain type of wine. It is an old-fashioned word that people use less often today.
adj. of a brownish-yellow or reddish-brown color, specifically resembling the skin of a horse or the color of a particular type of sherry. Often used in literary or descriptive contexts to evoke a specific visual tone.
Examples
“The old horse had a tawny coat.”
“The sunset cast a tawny glow over the valley, turning the grass into a golden-brown shade.”
“The interior of the library was decorated in deep tawny tones, with leather-bound books and dark mahogany furniture that gave the room a warm, aged atmosphere.”
Examples
simple
“The old horse had a tawny coat.”
contextual
“The sunset cast a tawny glow over the valley, turning the grass into a golden-brown shade.”
complex
“The interior of the library was decorated in deep tawny tones, with leather-bound books and dark mahogany furniture that gave the room a warm, aged atmosphere.”
Etymology
The adjective is derived from Middle English tauni, tawne (“having a brownish-orange colour”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman taune, tawné, and Old French tané, tanné, tanney (“of a tan colour”), an adjective use of the past participle of taner (“to turn hide into leather, tan”), from tan (“pulped oak bark used to tan leather, tanbark”), ultimately from Proto-Celtic tannos (“green oak”); further etymology uncertain, possibly from Proto-Indo-European (s)dʰnwos, *(s)dʰonu (“fir”). The -aw- spelling (also -au- in Middle English) seems to have been due to the pronunciation of Old French tané. The verb is derived from the adjective. Cognates * Breton tann * Medieval Latin tannāre (“to dye a tawny color; to tan”) * Old Irish caerthann (“rowan”)
From Middle English tauni, tawne (“brownish-orange colour; cloth of this colour; sweet beverage of this colour”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman tawné, and Old French tané, tanné, tanney (“tan colour; cloth of this colour”), from tané (verb): see further at etymology 1. Sense 2.1 (“Eurasian bullfinch”) is due to the brown colour of the female.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Related words
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englishreference.com/q/tawny