umbern.1
/ˈʌmbə/, U.S. /ˈəmbər/ Now dialect.† 2. In various figurative uses. Obsolete.† 3. under (the) umber of (or for), under the cloak or colour of; on pretence of. Obsolete.† 4. The visor of a helmet. Cf. umbrere n. Obsolete.
1. † b. The shadow of the pointer on a sundial or quadrant. Obsolete.† c. Reflection. (Cf. shadow n. 5) Obsolete.
a. Shade, shadow.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > intercepting or cutting off of light > [noun] > casting of a shadow > overshadowing > shadow or shade
shadea1000
shadowa1375
umber1382
umbrage1426
umbrage1541
shrouda1586
umbracle1609
umbra1638
1382 J. Wyclif Psalms cvi. 10 The sitteris in dercnessis, and in the vmbre of deth.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 8451 Vnder þe vmber o þat tre, þe kind o thinges lerd he.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 8017 Qua mai rest him in þer vmber, Es nathing þat mai him cumber.
c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness l. 524 Sesounez schal yow neuer sese of sede ne of heruest, Ne hete, ne no harde forst, vmbre ne droȝþe.
c1407 J. Lydgate Reson & Sensuallyte 1242 Pallas..Fleyng had about her hede Of Cynetys ful grete novmbre, Makyng in maner of an ovmbre.
c1440 Pallad. on Husb. xi. 329 Or flouris swete of vyne or other tre, In vmbre dried, may reserued be.
1470–85 T. Malory Morte d'Arthur viii. i. 274 Thenne the gentylwoman leyd her vnder an vmbre of a grete tree.
c1550 Complaynt Scotl. (1979) vi. 44 The mune is maid obscure..be rason that the vmbre and schaddou of the eird empeschis hyr to resaue lycht fra the soune.
1572 J. Bossewell Wks. Armorie ii. f. 25 Of whatsoever colour the fielde is of, the vmbre or shadowe of the token or signe borne in the fielde is traced of a contrarie color.
1673 Yorkshire Dial. 32 (E.D.S.) Put th' Whyes a-mel yon Stirks an' Steers, I' th' Oumar, an' sneck the lear-deers.
1677 W. Nicolson Gloss. Cumbrian Dial. in Trans. Royal Soc. Lit. (1870) 9 317 Oumer, shade. [Hence in Ray, etc.]
1781 in northern dial. glossaries Eng. Dial. Dict. at Oumer).
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > instruments for measuring time > [noun] > sundial > shadow on
umber1382
fescue1607
shadow-line1764
1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) 2 Kings xx. 11 The prophete..brouȝt aȝeyn the vmbre by the lynys..in the orloge of Achaz.
?a1400 in J. O. Halliwell Rara Mathematica (1839) 58 Byholde vpon what place of þe quadrant þe perpendicle falles, for ouþer it wille falle on þe vmbre toward or on þe vmbre froward.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > reflection > [noun] > reproducing an image > image produced by
imagec1350
umberc1407
idol1563
reflection1563
reflex1596
shadow-light1623
species1638
repercussion1646
reflect1829
c1407 J. Lydgate Reson & Sensuallyte 3846 Love him shal so dysfigure, To doon hys besy myght and peyn Hys ovne vmbre to restreyn.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > safety > protection or defence > [noun] > afforded by a specific person or thing
umberc1380
bannerc1400
safeguard1466
human shield1885
umbrella1948
the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrepute > damage to reputation > sullying or staining of reputation > [noun] > a stain or slur
spota1225
umberc1380
blotc1386
maculate1490
touch1508
blemish1526
blur1548
attaint1592
stain1594
attainder1597
tachec1610
sullya1616
tainta1616
smutch1648
slur1662
woad1663
a blot on an escutcheon1697
blotch1860
smear1943
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > thing seen > appearance or aspect > [noun] > of some quality > slight
gleam?c1225
glimpsea1547
suspicion1565
umber1573
umbrage1604
umbrationa1706
shima1800
c1380 J. Wyclif Sel. Wks. I. 355 Þe vertue of God makiþ umbre, whanne in a lowe place it lettiþ heete of synne.
c1425 St. Mary of Oignies ii. x. 30 in Anglia VIII. 176 After þat she hadde sitten..vndir þe vmbre of hym þat she desyred.
1430–40 J. Lydgate tr. Bochas Fall of Princes (1544) i. xii. 23 In euery cost his renoun did shyne. The fame therof was clipsed wt none vmbre.
c1450 J. Lydgate Secrees 402 Your studye ay stood, and your dilligence bryght as Apollo, with oute shadwe or Owmbre.
1481 W. Caxton in tr. Cicero De Senectute (Caxton) Prohemye sig. 1.4 Whiche lytil volume I haue emprysed tenprynte vnder the vmbre and shadowe of the noble proteccion of our moost dradde souerayn.
1573 in Catholic Tractates (S.T.S.) 26 In the synagoge, quhilk wes bot ane schaddou and vmbre of the trew kirk.
1581 in Catholic Tractates (S.T.S.) 137.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > dissimulation, pretence > semblance, outward show > [adverb] > under the appearance of
under (the) umber of (or for)1423
by colour ofc1425
under (the) colour ofc1451
under the shadow of1523
with coloura1593
under the umbrage of1674
1423 Kingis Quair cxxxiv Suich feynit treuth is all bot trechorye, Vnder the vmbre of hid ypocrisye.
1430 Rolls of Parl. IV. 501/1 To considre..how under ye umbre of such Vidimus, all an hole Navy of Adversaries myght..daily vetaill, stuffe and refreshe yair partie.
1475 Bk. Noblesse (Roxb.) 3 Tho roughe subtile wirkingis conspired and wroughte be the Frenshe partie undre the umbre and coloure of trewis.
1518 H. Watson tr. Hystorye Olyuer of Castylle (Roxb.) P 4 How Arthur vnder the vmbre for to goo to Saynt James, departed for to fynde his felowe Olyuer.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > armour > helmet > [noun] > visor
cover of the eyesc1300
visorc1330
umbrerea1400
umber14..
umbraryc1442
umbrelc1470
visure1470
sight1508
vizard1704
umbril1864
mesail1869
14.. Guy Warw. (C.) 8346 He opyned vmber that tyde, And keeled hym on euery syde.
1555 Lydgate's Auncient Hist. Warres betwixte Grecians & Troyans iii. xxii. P j/2 His swerde so mightely gan race Through the vmber [MSS. vmbrere, vmbrel] into Troylus face, That he hym gaue a large mortall wounde.
1555 Lydgate's Auncient Hist. Warres betwixte Grecians & Troyans iii. xxii. P i j/2 Cedeus wt his swerde such a stroke him sette, That through ye vmber out his eye he smette.
1603 J. Stow Suruay of London (new ed.) 385 The Esquier tooke his axe, & smote many blowes on the knight, and made him let fall his axe, and brake vp his vmber three times.
1616 J. Lane Contin. Squire's Tale xi. 261 The next that entred was a mightie knight..Whose bever and his vmbier closd vp weare.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
umbern.2
/ˈʌmbə/, U.S. /ˈəmbər/ = grayling n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > order Salmoniformes (salmon or trout) > family Salmonidae (salmon) > [noun] > genus Thymallus > member of (grayling)
graylingc1450
umber1496
umbra1610
esch1659
thyme fish1756
bluefish1807
blanket fish1870
Michigan grayling1879
pink1901
shutt1939
1496 Treat. Fysshynge wyth Angle in Bk. St. Albans (rev. ed.) sig. hviv The grayllynge by a nother name callyd vmbre is a delycyous fysshe to mannys mouthe.
a1552 J. Leland Itinerary (1711) V. 56 In the Lake be Umbers, yn Walsche Cangans, and great Store of Pykes, wherof many cum into Wy River.
1615 G. Markham Pleasures Princes (1635) iv. 23 The Humber haunts the clayie Rivers of hie Countries.
1615 G. Markham Pleasures Princes (1635) vi. 32 The Barbell, or Grayling, which some call the Vmber, are very crafty Fishes.
1662 R. Venables Experienc'd Angler v. 55 The Umber is generally taken with the same baits as the Trout.
1686 F. Willughby & J. Ray De Hist. Piscium Tab. N. 8 Thymus et Thymalus Salv[ian], a Greyling or Omer. Eboracensibus.
1740 R. Brookes Art of Angling i. ix. 33 The Grayling or Umber..is in proportion neither so broad nor so thick as a Trout.
1758 R. Griffiths Descr. Thames 178 Next to the Trout I place the Graylin or Umber, which are thought by some to differ.
a1823 Encycl. Metrop. (1845) XIV. 585/1 The Grayling, or Umber, spawns in May, and is in the best condition in November.
1853 J. Jackson (title) The Practical Fly-Fisher, more particularly for Grayling or Umber.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
umbern.3
/ˈʌmbə/, U.S. /ˈəmbər/ 1.
a. A brown earth used as a pigment; also, the colour of this.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > brown or brownness > [noun] > other browns
umberc1568
Spanish brown1660
earth colour1688
raw umber1702
iron brown1714
clove-brown1794
raw sienna1797
wood-brown1805
moorit1809
coffee1815
oak1815
burnt almond1850
Vandyke brown1850
Turk's head1853
catechu brown1860
oak brown1860
mummy brown1861
walnut-brown1865
Havana1873
havana brown1875
wax-brown1887
box1889
nutria1897
caramel1909
wallflower brown1913
cigar1923
desert-brown1923
sunburn1923
tobacco1923
maple1926
butterscotch1927
walnut1934
snuff1951
mink1955
toffee1960
sludge1962
earth-tone1973
the world > matter > colour > named colours > brown or brownness > colouring matter > [noun] > pigments
brown1549
umberc1568
castory1590
wood-colour1622
burnt umbera1650
Cologne earth1658
Spanish brown1660
raw umber1702
bistre1728
Siena1787
raw sienna1797
Terra Siennaa1817
sepia1821
brown ochre1823
bone brown1831
indigo-brown1838
mummy1854
Cassel brown1860
Prussian brown1860
mineral brown1869
Cappagh brown1875
Verona brown1889
c1568 [see umber-colour n. at Compounds 1].
1612 H. Peacham Gentlemans Exercise 80 Vmber is a more sad colour.
a1616 W. Shakespeare As you like It (1623) i. iii. 111 Ile put my selfe in poore and meane attire, And with a kinde of vmber smirch my face. View more context for this quotation
1616 B. Jonson Cynthias Revels (rev. ed.) v. iv, in Wks. I. 248 The gloues are right, sir, you shall burie'hem.., seuen yeeres, and.., they shall still retaine their first sent, true spanish. There's ambre i'the vmbre.
a1650 in E. Norgate Miniatura (1919) 97 For the Black Cercle of the eye take Umber, Coale black, and a little whyte.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. App. Umber. This earth when burnt makes a good shade for gold.
1755 Gentleman's Mag. Oct. 447/2 Sea sand, that in colour resembles unburnt umber, but is lighter and more yellow.
1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 744 Dark back-grounds may be composed of bistre, umber, or Cologne earth.
1842 J. C. Loudon Suburban Horticulturist 167 Certain colours, having a greater affinity for water than for oil (such as blacks, umbers, and ochres), are liable to be affected by damp.
1899 Pall Mall Mag. Jan. 90 The scheme of colour is composed of the yellows, umbers, and reds which Rembrandt loved so intensely.
b. burnt umber, a special preparation of the pigment rendering it redder in colour. Also attributive.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > brown or brownness > colouring matter > [noun] > pigments
brown1549
umberc1568
castory1590
wood-colour1622
burnt umbera1650
Cologne earth1658
Spanish brown1660
raw umber1702
bistre1728
Siena1787
raw sienna1797
Terra Siennaa1817
sepia1821
brown ochre1823
bone brown1831
indigo-brown1838
mummy1854
Cassel brown1860
Prussian brown1860
mineral brown1869
Cappagh brown1875
Verona brown1889
a1650 E. Norgate Miniatura (Tanner 326) (1919) 40 The deepning being made with Lake and burnt Umber, the heigthning of pure Gold.
1660 Albert Durer Revived 12 Shadow it with the water of Burnt Umber.
1787 W. Williams Ess. Mech. Oil Colours 42 Burnt umber, a very quick drier.
1843 Winsor & Newton Hand-bk. Water Colours 27 Burnt Umber, a quiet brown colour, affording clear and warm shadows.
1843 W. M. Thackeray Jérôme Paturot in Wks. (1900) XIII. 388 The Jew-boy.., the burnt-umber Malay who sweeps crossings, save money.
1886 J. Ruskin Præterita I. xii. 396 To crumble burnt umber with a dry brush for foliage and foreground.
2. One or other of various moths.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > Heterocera > [noun] > family Geometridae > umber
umber1832
1832 J. Rennie Conspectus Butterflies & Moths Brit. 103 The Scarce Umbre (L. prosapiaria) appears in October or November.
1832 J. Rennie Conspectus Butterflies & Moths Brit. 103 The Umbre (C. defoliaria) appears the end of October, in woods and copses.
1887 Nicholson's Illustr. Dict. Gardening IV. 122 Hybernia defoliaria, or the Mottled Umber.., and H. aurantiaria, or the Scarce Umber.
3. Attributive in the sense of ‘umber-coloured’.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > brown or brownness > [adjective] > other browns
wainscot1577
earth-coloured1722
honey-brown1774
snuff-coloured1787
snuffy1789
moorit1795
iron brown1798
umber1802
umbery1850
sienna-brown1853
oily-brown1861
seal-brown1881
tabac1881
glandaceous1885
cigar-brown1895
bead-brown1912
cocoa1942
toffee-brown1961
toffee1962
sludgy1975
1765 Museum Rusticum 4 176 The best umbro madder, imported from Holland.
1802 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. III. i. 226 Umbre Lizard.
1803 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. IV. ii. 384 Umbre Acanthurus.
1832 J. Rennie Conspectus Butterflies & Moths Brit. 103 The Umbre Link (Hibernia connectaria) appears in November and December.
1866 D. M. Mulock Noble Life x The black woods—black, or with a faint umber shadow running through them.
1870 B. Disraeli Lothair (new ed.) xxxviii The golden and umber vapours fell into forms that..depicted the objects of his frequent meditation.
1881 E. A. Ormerod Man. Injurious Insects (1890) 337 The caterpillar of the Mottled Umber Moth is a ‘looper’.
Compounds
C1. General attributive.† umber-owe n. Obsolete a kind of madder.
umber-colour n.
ΚΠ
c1568 in H. J. F. Swayne Churchwardens' Accts. Sarum (1896) 116 Ye paynter for vmber coller.
1816 W. Smith Strata Identified 3 The soil is of a mellow brown or umber colour.
umber mine n.
ΚΠ
?1881 Census Eng. & Wales: Instr. Clerks classifying Occupations & Ages (?1885) 85 Umber Mine Agent.
umber miner n.
ΚΠ
?1881 Census Eng. & Wales: Instr. Clerks classifying Occupations & Ages (?1885) 85 Umber Miner.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > plants used in dyeing > [noun] > madder
maddereOE
red madder?a1425
warence1526
rubee?a1547
umber-owea1661
madder plant1758
alizari1769
munjeet1813
a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) Kent 57 There are three kinds thereof. 1. Crop-Madder. 2. Umber-Owe. 3. Pipe or Fat-Madder.
C2.
umber-black adj.
ΚΠ
1845 Encycl. Metrop. XXV. 882/2 A tufted umber-black plant.
umber-brown adj.
ΚΠ
1832 T. Brown Bk. Butterflies, Sphinxes & Moths (1834) I. 171 The pupa is of a burnt umber-brown colour.
1859 B. Clemens Tineina N. Amer. (1872) 25 The head is umbre-brown.
1887 W. Phillips Man. Brit. Discomycetes 59 The hymenium is dark umber brown, externally a little lighter.
umber-coloured adj.
ΚΠ
1817 J. F. Stephens Shaw's Gen. Zool. X. ii. 335 The upper parts of the body umber-coloured.
1832 T. Brown Bk. Butterflies, Sphinxes & Moths (1834) I. 217 With..three umber-coloured spots towards the lower edge of the under wings.
umber-rufous adj.
ΚΠ
1836 M. J. Berkeley in J. E. Smith Eng. Flora V. ii. 17 Pileus dry squamulose umber-rufous.
umber-tinted adj.
ΚΠ
1895 Daily News 20 Dec. 5/2 Delicately arched nostrils, sensuously-moulded lips, and umber-tinted hair.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
umbern.4
/ˈʌmbə/, U.S. /ˈəmbər/ = number n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > mathematical number or quantity > [noun]
i-telc1000
telc1000
numberc1300
suma1387
quantitya1398
umberc1400
value1543
term1552
terminus?a1560
quantum1567
valuation1636
numerality1646
numeration1646
numerical1760
numeric1878
naturality1942
c1400 Laud Troy Bk. 4319 He sclow that tyme withouten vmbre Mo Troyens that I can numbre.
1746 Exmoor Vocab. in Gentleman's Mag. Aug. 408 Umber, number.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
umberv.1
/ˈʌmbə/, U.S. /ˈəmbər/ Chiefly dialect.
transitive. To shade, to protect.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > intercepting or cutting off of light > intercept or cut off (light) [verb (transitive)] > overshadow > shade
shadowa1366
shadec1400
umberc1400
umbrage1647
parasol1799
enshade18..
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) xvii. 78 It will couer and oumbre all his body for þe sonne.
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) xxii. 100 It will couer all þe body and owmbre it fra þe sonne.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Ombré, vmbred, or shadowed; (a tearme in Blason).
1790 F. Grose Provinc. Gloss. (ed. 2) Oumert, shaded with trees or buildings.
1828 W. Carr Dial. Craven (ed. 2) Oumer, to shadow.
1828 W. Carr Dial. Craven (ed. 2) (at cited word) That birk oumers 't gait.
a1867 in Harland & Wilkinson Lanc. Folk-Lore 60 T' leaves on t' trees, they owm'ered t' land, And fadin' was the summer light.
Derivatives
ˈumbering adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > intercepting or cutting off of light > [adjective] > casting a shadow > overshadowing > affording shade
umbrosea1425
shadowing1552
umbrate?1553
shadeful1563
shady1579
shadinga1586
umbrageous1587
shadowy1607
umbriferous1616
umbratile1659
umbracious1839
adumbral1845
umbering1872
1872 Dixon Milkin' Time (E.D.D.) The branches of the owmering yew.
1880 A. B. Todd August in Poet. Wks. (1906) 209 When winds grew hush'd, and umbering trees were still.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
† umberv.2
Obsolete. rare.
transitive. To number.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > enumeration, reckoning, or calculation > number, calculate, or reckon [verb (transitive)]
rimeeOE
arimec885
atellc885
talec897
i-telle971
tellOE
readc1225
reckon?c1225
aima1375
numbera1382
denumber1382
accounta1393
casta1400
countc1400
umberc1400
ascribe1432
annumerate?a1475
to sum upa1475
annumbera1500
ennumber1535
reckon?1537
tally1542
compute1579
recount1581
rate1599
catalogize1602
to add up1611
suma1616
enumeratea1649
numerate1657
to run up1830
to figure out1834
figure1854
to count up1872
enumer1936
c1400 Laud Troy Bk. 370 He sclow champiouns withouten nombre, So manye that no man myȝt hem vmbre.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
umberv.3
/ˈʌmbə/, U.S. /ˈəmbər/ transitive. To stain or paint with umber; to make of a dark brown colour.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > brown or brownness > making or becoming brown > make brown [verb (transitive)]
brown1570
umber1612
embrown1725
1612 B. Jonson Alchemist v. v. sig. M3 You..told her, you had tane the paines, To dye your beard, and vmbre o'er your face. View more context for this quotation
1615 G. Markham Pleasures Princes (1635) ii. 7 He which is a master in this Art will Vmber, and darken the Rod.
a1627 T. Middleton & W. Rowley Spanish Gipsie (1653) ii. sig. C2 No Red-oker rascalls umberd with soot and bacon as the English Gipsies are.
1735 Dict. Polygraph. I. Q 5 After the faces have been umbred, shadow the hair.
1813 J. Hogg Queen's Wake i. ii. 49 When the gusts of October had rifled the thorn, Had dappled the woodland, and umbered the plain.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1c1380
n.21496
n.3c1568n.4c1400v.1c1400
v.2c1400v.31612