pink
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pink¹
- /ˈpɪŋk/ US, UK
- [ˈpʰɪŋk] US, UK
- /ˈpiŋk/
- [ˈpʰiŋk]
Rhymes with -ɪŋk
Where it comes from
Origin uncertain; perhaps from Dutch pinken (“to blink”) or the English verb pink from the same source. Perhaps from the notion of the petals being pinked. An earlier word for similar flesh-like colors, mostly displaced by pink, was incarnation ([1300s]; see Etymonline) and carnation.
noun pinks
- A color reminiscent of pinks, the flowers. My new dress is a wonderful shade of pink.
- Magenta, the colour evoked by red and blue light when combined.
- Pale red.
- Any of various flowers of that colour in the genus Dianthus, sometimes called carnations. This garden in particular has a beautiful bed of pinks.
- A perfect example; excellence, perfection; the embodiment of some quality. Your hat, madam, is the very pink of fashion.
- Hunting pink; scarlet, as worn by hunters. I had taken it for granted that there would be people ‘in pink’, but these enormous confident strangers overwhelmed me with the visible authenticity of their brick-red coats.
- A huntsman. The pinks stand about the inn-door lighting cigars and waiting to see us start, while their hacks are led up and down the market-place, on which the inn looks.
- One of the colour balls used in snooker, coloured pink, with a value of 6 points. Oh dear, he's left himself snookered behind the pink.
- An unlettered and uncultured, but relatively prosperous, member of the middle classes; compare Babbitt, bourgeoisie.
- Alternative form of pinko My own guess is that there are some pinks in the State Department and in other government departments and agencies, and of course they should be found and ousted; but it seems to me that this can be done without besmirching innocent people and without making such broadside charges that people will l
- The vagina or vulva. Then Eddie did what he calls, 'Two in the pink, one in the stink.' “I held up my right forefinger and middle finger and said, “Two.” Then I held up my ring finger and said “One. Two in the pussy, one in the ass.”
- A pink dye or pigment.
- A pen, pencil, crayon, etc., made of pink pigment.
- Something, or a part of a thing, which is pink.
adjective pinker · pinkest
- Having a colour between red and white; pale red.
- Of a fox-hunter's jacket: scarlet.
- Having conjunctivitis.
- By comparison to red (communist), supportive of socialist ideas but not actually socialist or communist. The word "socialist" has so many connotations that it can cover almost anything from pink liberalism to red-red communism.
- Relating to women or girls. pink-collar
- Relating to homosexuals as a group within society. the pink economy
verb pinks · pinking · pinked
- To become pink in color, to redden. The woman’s pale skin pinked as she shook her head. “No. It’s out of my budget. Come on, Sammy”
- To turn (something) pink. They are all nearly nude, pinked and bronzed by the sun.
- To turn (a topaz or other gemstone) pink by the application of heat. Because heating is relatively easy to perform once one is trained to do it, it can be assumed that any pink topaz from Brazil, the gem’s main modern producer, is colored more by man than nature.[…] Relatively few stones from Brazil have this trace element in enough quantity for what dealers call “pi
pink²
- /ˈpɪŋk/ US, UK
- [ˈpʰɪŋk] US, UK
- /ˈpiŋk/
- [ˈpʰiŋk]
Rhymes with -ɪŋk
Where it comes from
Unknown. Some lexicographers suggest comparison to regional German Pinke (“minnow; small salmon”), but this is not widely accepted.
noun pinks
- A common minnow (Phoxinus phoxinus0.
- A young Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, before it becomes a smolt; a parr.
pink³
- /ˈpɪŋk/ US, UK
- [ˈpʰɪŋk] US, UK
- /ˈpiŋk/
- [ˈpʰiŋk]
Rhymes with -ɪŋk
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Middle Dutch pincke. Compare French pinque.
noun pinks
- A narrow boat.
pink⁴
- /ˈpɪŋk/ US, UK
- [ˈpʰɪŋk] US, UK
- /ˈpiŋk/
- [ˈpʰiŋk]
Rhymes with -ɪŋk
Where it comes from
Probably ultimately imitative, or from Dutch pingelen (“to do fine needlework”) or Low German [Term?]; compare Low German pinken (“hit, peck”) and Pinke (“big needle”).
verb pinks · pinking · pinked
- To decorate a piece of clothing or fabric by adding holes or by scalloping the fringe.
-
To prick with a sword.
‘Pugh!’ says she, ‘you have pinked a man in a duel, that's all.’
Similar: draw blood, jab, prick, chef, chib, ching, chive, enthrill, foin, gore, gride, job
-
To wound by irony, criticism, or ridicule.
“Young man, if you have no authority, let me speak to someone who has! Put me through to Mr. Berquist.” The stooge suddenly lost his smile and Jubal thought gleefully that he had at last pinked him.
Similar: draw blood
noun pinks
- A small hole or puncture made by a sharp, slender instrument such as a rapier, poniard or dagger, or (by extension) a bullet; a stab. At a great word she will her poynard draw, Looke for the pincke if once thou giue the lye.
- A small hole or eyelet punched in a garment for decoration, as with a pinking iron; a scallop. Item,..for iiil* powdringis and pinkis to the sam goune, .xij s
pink⁵
- /ˈpɪŋk/ US, UK
- [ˈpʰɪŋk] US, UK
- /ˈpiŋk/
- [ˈpʰiŋk]
Rhymes with -ɪŋk
Where it comes from
Onomatopoeic. Compare ping.
verb pinks · pinking · pinked
- Of a motor car, to emit a high "pinking" noise, usually as a result of ill-set ignition timing for the fuel used (in a spark ignition engine).
- Of a musical instrument, to sound a very high-pitched, short note. And then the record changed, a piano pinking high a Poulenc-like theme.
pink⁶
- /ˈpɪŋk/ US, UK
- [ˈpʰɪŋk] US, UK
- /ˈpiŋk/
- [ˈpʰiŋk]
Rhymes with -ɪŋk
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Dutch pinken.
verb pinks · pinking · pinked
- To wink; to blink. A Hungry Fox that had got a Cock in his Eye, and could not tell how to come at him ; cast himself at his Length upon the Ground, and there he lay winking and pinking as if he had Sore Eyes.
adjective
- Half-shut; winking. Come, thou monarch of the vine, Plumpy Bacchus with pink eyne! In thy vats our cares be drowned, With thy grapes our hairs be crowned.
pink⁷
- /ˈpɪŋk/ US, UK
- [ˈpʰɪŋk] US, UK
- /ˈpiŋk/
- [ˈpʰiŋk]
Rhymes with -ɪŋk
Where it comes from
Unknown. Attested from the late 15th century.
noun
- Any of various lake pigments or dyes in yellow, yellowish green or brown shades, made with plant coloring and a metallic oxide base. To make Dutch pink, boil the stems of woad in a solution of alum, and then mix the liquor with clay, marl, or chalk, which will become mixed with the colour of the decoction
Pink⁸
Where it comes from
* As an English surname, from Old English pinca (“chaffinch”). This would not be a native Germanic inheritance as the expected form would be finc, thus probably borrowed or contaminated from Vulgar Latin *pincio (see French pinson) and its related parallels.
* Also as an English surname, from rare Middle English pink (“something small”), presumably related to pinkie.
* As a German occupational surname for a blacksmith, from imitative pink(e)pank, after the sound of hammering.
* As a Lower Sorbian surname, variant of Pjeńk, see Penk.
proper noun
- A surname.
Pink⁹
Where it comes from
Shortening.
noun Pinks
- An operative of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: pinkish, tap, colored, chromatic, knock, rap, garden pink, daisy, rose, rosy, rose-tinted, scarlet, red, rosé, balmy, white
Translations
Every language
noun flower
| Español | clavel |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | ナデシコ nadeshiko |
| 中文 | 康乃馨 kāngnǎixīn |
| Português | cravo, cravina |
| Français | œillet |
| Deutsch | Nelke |
| Italiano | garofano |
| Română | garoafă |
| Русский | гвозди́ка gvozdíka |
| العربية | قَرَنْفُل qaranful |
noun pale red colour
| Español | rosado, rosa |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 분홍색 bunhongsaek, 핑크 pingkeu |
| 日本語 | 桃色 momoiro, ピンク pinku, 淡紅色 tankōshoku, 薄紅梅 usukoubai |
| 中文 | 粉紅色 /粉红色 fěnhóngsè, 桃色 táosè, 淡紅 /淡红 dànhóng, 泛紅 /泛红 fànhóng, 粉色 fěnsè |
| हिन्दी | गुलाबी gulābī |
| Português | cor-de-rosa, rosa |
| Français | rose |
| Deutsch | Rosa |
| Italiano | rosa |
| Ελληνικά | ροζ roz |
| Română | roz |
| Русский | ро́зовый rózovyj |
| Tiếng Việt | hồng |
| العربية | وَرْدِيّ wardiyy, زَهْرِيّ zahriyy, بَمْبِيّ bambiyy |
| עברית | ורוד varod |
adj colored/coloured between red and white
| Español | rosado, sonrosado, rosáceo, róseo, cariaco, rosmarino |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 핑크 pingkeu, 분홍빛 bunhongbit |
| 日本語 | ピンク pinku, 桃色 momoiro |
| 中文 | 粉紅色 /粉红色 fěnhóngsè, 粉色 fěnsè |
| हिन्दी | गुलाबी gulābī |
| Kiswahili | waridi |
| Português | cor-de-rosa, rosa, rosado, róseo |
| Français | rose |
| Deutsch | pink, rosa |
| Italiano | rosa |
| Ελληνικά | ροζ roz |
| Română | roz, trandafiriu |
| Русский | ро́зовый rózovyj |
| Tiếng Việt | màu hồng |
| العربية | زَهْرِيّ zahriyy, وَرْدِيّ wardiyy |
| עברית | ורוד, וָרֹד varód |
verb (of a motor car) to emit a high "pinking" noise
| Français | pétiller |
|---|---|
| Русский | барахли́ть baraxlítʹ |
Talk about this word "pink." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/pink. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. pink. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/pink "pink." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/pink.Cite this
@misc{pink_2026,
title = {pink},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/pink},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
