violetn.1
/ˈvʌɪəlᵻt/, U.S. /ˈvaɪ(ə)lət/ 1. A plant or flower of the genus Viola, esp. V. odorata, the sweet-smelling violet, growing wild, and cultivated in gardens; the flowers are usually purplish blue, mauve, or white.
a. In singular without article or with the.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > violet
apple leafa1200
violetc1330
violac1430
March violet1568
blue violet1656
sweet-scented violet1731
Canada violet1771
ladies' delight1809
dame's rocket1866
c1330 Arth. & Merl. 3061 Mirie it is in time of June,..Violet & rose flour Woneþ þan in maidens bour.
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 261 Of þat hille [the stones] smelleþ swete as violet.
c1400 Pilgr. Sowle (1483) iv. xxviii. 74 The white lely, the rede rose, the fresshe violet.
c1440 Pallad. on Husb. i. 1014 In busshis, treen, & herbis they may fynde Herbe origane, and tyme, and violette.
c1530 Court of Love ccvi Eke eche at other threw the floures bright, The primerose, the violete, and the gold.
1571 R. Henryson tr. Æsop Morall Fabillis (Bassandyne) 55 The Rosis reid..and the purpour Violat bla.
1589 R. Greene Menaphon sig. D There growes..the cowsloppe, the primrose, and the violet.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 700 Underfoot the Violet, Crocus, and Hyacinth with rich inlay Broiderd the ground. View more context for this quotation
a1718 M. Prior Garland i The Pride of ev'ry Grove I chose, The Violet sweet, and Lilly fair.
1785 T. Martyn tr. J.-J. Rousseau Lett. Elements Bot. xxxi. 478 Antirrhinum, Fumitory, Violet, Impatiens and Orchis.
1838 T. Thomson Chem. Org. Bodies 386 The violet is well known to be coloured by a blue matter which acids change to red.
1855 C. Kingsley Theseus in Heroes i. 199 The meadows [are sweet] with violet.
b. with a and plural: A single flower, plant, or species of this.
Π
c1374 G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (1868) i. met. vi. 25 Yif þou wilt gadre violettz, ne go þou not to þe purper wode whan þe felde chirkynge agriseþ of colde.
14.. in T. Wright & R. P. Wülcker Anglo-Saxon & Old Eng. Vocab. (1884) I. 712 Hec viola, a vyolytte.
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (1839) xiv. 160 Here colour is..more browne than the Violettes.
1483 Cath. Angl. 402/2 A violett, viola.
1576 A. Fleming tr. Erasmus in Panoplie Epist. 352 What man is able to affirme, that he euer sawe the Spring tide without Marche Violettes?
1598 B. Yong tr. G. Polo Enamoured Diana in tr. J. de Montemayor Diana 469 Roses and vilets strowing.
1613 T. Dekker Strange Horse-race sig. A2v It can bee no shame to gather a Violet, growing close to the ground.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iv, in tr. Virgil Wks. 130 He spoils the Saffron Flow'rs, he sips the blues Of Vi'lets . View more context for this quotation
1744 J. Thomson Spring in Seasons (new ed.) 21 Where purple Violets lurk, With all the lowly Children of the Shade.
1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Odyssey in Iliad & Odyssey II. v. 86 Meadows of softest verdure, purpled o'er With violets.
1811 A. T. Thomson London Dispensatory ii. 400 Violets have an agreeable sweet odour, and a very slightly bitter, kernel-like taste.
1880 C. E. Bessey Bot. 551 The genus Viola, the Violets, includes about half of the species of the order.
c. collective and plural. The plant, or more usually the flowers, pulled or plucked for use in medicine or in making confections.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > violet > for use in medicine, confections, or games
violeta1400
rooster1856
violet1890
collective.
plural.a1425 tr. Arderne's Treat. Fistula 93 Oile of violettez may be made in þe same maner.a1425 tr. Arderne's Treat. Fistula 93 Oile of violettz.1562 W. Turner 2nd Pt. Herball f. 164 Violettes make a man to slepe, and they are good for the disease of the vuula.1563 T. Hill Arte Gardening (1593) 83 The Violets ought especially to be gathered in March, and dryed in a shadowey place of the aire.1631 E. Jorden Disc. Nat. Bathes vi. 35 If Matthiolus his reason were good, then Roses and Violets, and Vinegar should be hot.1718 J. Quincy Pharmacopœia Officinalis 181 Violets..are in every one's acquaintance, for their Use in Medicine.1736 N. Bailey Dict. Domesticum Violets are of a laxative quality, and are us'd medically in syrups, juleps, conserves, oils, &c.1855 R. G. Mayne Expos. Lexicon Med. Sci. (1860) 539 Iosacchar,..old name for the sugar of violets.1861 R. Bentley Man. Bot. ii. iii. 458 The Violets generally, have been used on the Continent, as demulcent expectorants.1887 Lady 20 Jan. 38/3 Small cut-glass dishes of pink and white bon-bons, together with candied violets.a1400–50 Stockh. Med. MS 11 For to makyn surripe of violet.
14.. Med. Rec. in T. Wright & J. O. Halliwell Reliquiæ Antiquæ (1845) I. 52 For the stane: tak grummel, percel, rede nettil, violet, franken ensens, and chiristane kirnels.
a1425 tr. Arderne's Treat. Fistula 67 Oile of violette with white of iii. eiren well stired togidre.
1562 W. Turner 2nd Pt. Herball f. 164 The violet is better that is gathered in the morninge.
1811 A. T. Thomson London Dispensatory iii. 669 Syrup of Violet.
d. figurative. (Applied esp. to persons.)
ΘΠ
society > morality > virtue > purity > chastity > [noun]
kasté13..
chastityc1305
chasteheada1325
temperance1340
continencec1380
chastenessc1386
virginitya1400
violet1412
castimony1490
continency1526
chastice1567
nunnery1654
brahmacharya1787
moral restraint1803
the mind > attention and judgement > beauty > [noun] > beautiful thing or person > beautiful person > beautiful woman
clearc1330
comelya1375
wlonk?a1400
brightc1400
gayc1400
sheenc1400
violet1412
berylc1440
blossomc1440
bonnya1529
pertc1540
bonylasse1546
Venus?1572
spark1575
bellibone1579
bonnibel1579
nymph1584
cheruba1616
lily1622
bellea1640
fine1639
toast1700
houri1745
belle dame1768
peri1813
beauty queen1835
stallion1970
1412–20 J. Lydgate tr. Hist. Troy iii. 4380 Somme also..With þe lillye of virginite And violettis of parfit chastite, Ascendid ben a-boue þe sterris clere.
14.. J. Lydgate To Soverain Lady 96 O violet, O flour desiree, Sith I am for you so amorous [etc.].
c1440 York Myst. xxv. 498 Hayll! vyolett, vernand with swete odoure.
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II v. ii. 46 Welcome my sonne, who are the violets now That strew the greene lap of the new come spring. View more context for this quotation
1842 Ld. Tennyson Will Waterproof's Monologue in Poems (new ed.) II. 189 How out of place she makes The violet of a legend blow Among the chops and steaks!
2. Cloth, dress, or vestments of a violet colour.Not always clearly separable from 3.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > [noun] > of specific colour
purpureeOE
blackc1225
greyc1225
white?c1225
greena1250
yellow1368
violet1380
purplec1390
blue1480
colours1641
tawnies1809
butternut1810
subfusc1853
solid1883
Lovat1908
jungle green1946
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric of specific colour > [noun] > purple or blue
purpureeOE
violet1380
jacinth1382
bluec1390
watchetc1405
celestinec1430
celestrine1435
turkin1483
hyacinth1610
London blue1633
mazarine1694
1380 in Test. Karleol. (1893) 139 j cote de violett.
a1400 Sir Degrev. 625 Sche come in a vyolet, With whyȝthe perl overfret.
c1412 T. Hoccleve De Regimine Principum 696 And where be my gounes of scarlet,..Grenes also, and þe fayre violet?
1483 in R. Davies York Rec. (1843) 142 The aldermen shalbe in vielet & the xxiiijti in blew.
a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) II. f. cxliiiv He was mette wt the Prouost of ye marchauntys with a company of .xv. C. horse, ye Cytezyns beyng cladde in whyte and vyolette.
c1580 in Eng. Hist. Rev. July (1914) 520 In every tene clothes you muste have ij light popengaye grenes, ij light violettes, ij light skye collers, ij azars and ij Blewes.
1598 J. Stow Suruay of London 130 The Maior with..the Aldermen are accustomed to be present in their Violets at Paules, on Good Friday, and in their Scarlets..at the Spittle in the Holy daies (except Wednesday in Violet).
1721 C. King Brit. Merchant II. 96 What is become of our noble Manufacture of Plunkets, Violets, and Blues, formerly made in Suffolk?
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. x. 599 He was well pleased that, in his own palace, an outcast..should, as king of France, dress in violet on days of court mourning.
a1894 W. Pater Gaston de Latour (1896) i. 29 The mass said so solemnly, in violet, on Innocents' Day.
3.
a. A purplish blue colour resembling that of the violet; a pigment or dye of this colour.Partly a substantival use of the adjective.
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the world > matter > colour > named colours > purple or purpleness > [noun] > bluish purple
violeta1400
blue-violet1783
pansy1891
petunia1891
a1400–50 Alexander 4336 Nouthire to toly ne to taunde transmitte we na vebbis, To vermylion ne violett ne variant littis.
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (1839) xiv. 160 Here colour is liche Vyolet.
c1475 Promptorium Parvulorum 510 (K.) Violet, coloure, violaceus.
1604 E. Grimeston tr. J. de Acosta Nat. & Morall Hist. Indies iv. xxvii. 284 There are other kindes which they call gilleflowers of the Indies, the which are like to a fine orange tawnie vellet, or a violet.
a1641 R. Montagu Acts & Monuments (1642) 367 Of the same stuffe and colour that the Stole was of, that is, of a violet inclining to red.
1688 R. Holme Acad. Armory (1905) iv. ix. 382/1 Cassocks of fine scarletted murrey (which is violett).
1730 N. Bailey et al. Dictionarium Britannicum at Purple A red Colour, bordering on Violet.
1796 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (1799) I. 543 More than one Churchman considers violet as the most beautiful of colours, because his Bishop wears it.
1815 J. F. Stephens Shaw's Gen. Zool. IX. i. 56 The whole plumage is of a beautiful blue green, changing in certain lights to violet.
1852 W. M. Thackeray Henry Esmond II. ii. 31 I think I never saw such a beautiful violet as that of her eyes.
1884 Marquis of Dufferin in A. Lyall Life Marquis of Dufferin (1905) II. 64 A tremendous thunderstorm had..dyed Olympus and his adjoining peaks with the deepest, blackest violet.
b. The scent of violets, esp. as used in cosmetics.
Π
a1850 in A. Davis Package & Print (1967) Pl. 8 Essence of Millefleur, Bouquet, Marechalle, Resida [sic], Violet, Tubereuse.
1890–1 T. Eaton & Co. Catal. Fall–Winter 42/2 Perfumes..white violet, Italian violet,..satchet powder,..violet.
1898 Illustr. London News 1 Jan. 34 (advt.) Lance Perfumes..acacia, violet, lilac..price one shilling.
1928–9 Army & Navy Stores Catal. 496/3 Natural Flower Perfumes..Muguet, Rose, Violet.
1982 Christian Sci. Monitor 26 Nov. b8/3 I stocked up on Roger & Gallet hand soaps in violet and sandalwood.
4. An onion; in plural spring onions, sage and onions. slang. In many dictionaries of slang but no contextual examples found.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > fruit and vegetables > vegetables > onion, leek, or garlic > [noun] > onion
onion1356
bulb1568
faverel1597
violet1890
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular vegetables > [noun] > onion, leek, or garlic > onion
onion1356
bulb1568
faverel1597
violet1890
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > violet > for use in medicine, confections, or games
violeta1400
rooster1856
violet1890
1890 A. Barrère & C. G. Leland Dict. Slang II. 397/1 Violets (common), an euphemism for sage and onions.
1904 J. S. Farmer & W. E. Henley Slang VII. iii. 277/1 Violet (or garden-violet),..1. An onion: spec. in pl. = spring onions used as a salad. Also (2) in pl. = sage-and-onion stuffing.
1929 M. A. Gill Underworld Slang 12/2 Violets, onions.
1946 J. Irving Royal Navalese 182 Violets, spring onions.
Compounds
C1. With specific epithets.
a. Denoting species of Viola, or varieties of the common violet.The number of these is very large, and only the older or more prominent are illustrated here. Tournefort's species (53 in all) are enumerated in Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. (1753) s.v. Viola; later lists may be found in Loudon Encycl. Pl. (1829–36) 186 and Johnson Cottage Gard. Dict. (1852) 912–3. American species are given by Gray Man. Bot. (1860, etc.) and in recent American dictionaries. See also dog violet n.
alpine violet n.
Π
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Viola The purple alpine Violet, with very small leaves.
bog violet n.
Π
1713 J. Petiver Catal. Ray's Eng. Herbal Bog Violet.
hairy violet n.
Π
1777 J. Lightfoot Flora Scotica II. App. 1109 [Viola hirta] Hairy Violet. Anglis.
March violet n.
Π
1578 H. Lyte tr. R. Dodoens Niewe Herball ii. i. 148 The sweete Violet is called..in English Violets, the garden Violet, the sweete Violet, and the Marche Violet.
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. 621 It turneth into a March Violet colour.
1728 R. Bradley Dict. Botanicum at Viola Single March Violets.
1728 R. Bradley Dict. Botanicum at Viola Double March Violets.
1731 P. Miller Gardeners Dict. I. at Viola Greater hairy March Violet, without Smell.
marsh violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > allied flowers
pansyc1450
heartsease1530
pansy flower1530
three (also two) faces under (or in) a (or one) hood1548
bulbous violet1578
love-in-idleness1578
sweet violet1578
pensea1592
cull-me-to-you1597
dog's tooth violet1597
dog violet1597
kiss-me-ere-I-rise1597
live in idleness1597
wild violet1597
yellow violet1597
love-and-idle1630
love-in-idle1664
trinity1699
fancy1712
wood violet1713
marsh violet1753
tree violet1753
kiss-me-at-the-gate1787
bird's-foot violet1802
Parma violet1812
Johnny-jump-up1827
stepmother1828
Neapolitan violet1830
garden gate1842
butterfly pea1848
kissa1852
pinkany-John1854
viola1871
kiss-me1877
pink-eyed John1877
face and hood1886
roosterhead1894
trout-lily1909
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Viola The round-leaved marsh Violet.
1777 J. Lightfoot Flora Scotica I. 506 [Viola palustris] Marsh Violet. Anglis.
mountain violet n.
Π
1657 W. Coles Adam in Eden 175 Mountain Violets with jagged Leaves.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Viola The great flowered yellow mountain Violet.
1858 A. Irvine Handbk. Brit. Plants 688 Viola lutea, Yellow Mountain Violet, or Yellow Pansy.
Neapolitan violet n.
Π
1836 J. C. Loudon Encycl. Plants (rev. ed.) 187 Viola odorata is a favorite flower... The double purple and the Neapolitan are the most esteemed varieties.
1843 Penny Cycl. XXVI. 344/1 Some of them have double flowers, which is the case in the variety known as the Neapolitan violet.
Parma violet n.
Π
1856 ‘E. S. Delamer’ Flower Garden 106 The Parma Violet has very light-blue double flowers.
1880 M. E. Braddon Just as I Am xxi A conservatory all abloom with snowdrops and Parma violets.
rock violet n.
Π
1713 J. Petiver Catal. Ray's Eng. Herbal Yellow Rock Violet.
Russian violet n.
Π
1856 ‘E. S. Delamer’ Flower Garden 106 Such are the Russian and the Neapolitan Violets, amongst the singles.
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. II. 1218/2 Large-flowered simple kinds—e.g., the Russian Violet.
sweet-scented violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > violet
apple leafa1200
violetc1330
violac1430
March violet1568
blue violet1656
sweet-scented violet1731
Canada violet1771
ladies' delight1809
dame's rocket1866
1731 P. Miller Gardeners Dict. I. at Viola White sweet-scented Violet.
1829 J. Togno & E. Durand tr. H. Milne-Edwards & P. Vavasseur Man. Materia Medica ix. 366 Sweet Scented Violet. Viola odorata.
sweet violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > allied flowers
pansyc1450
heartsease1530
pansy flower1530
three (also two) faces under (or in) a (or one) hood1548
bulbous violet1578
love-in-idleness1578
sweet violet1578
pensea1592
cull-me-to-you1597
dog's tooth violet1597
dog violet1597
kiss-me-ere-I-rise1597
live in idleness1597
wild violet1597
yellow violet1597
love-and-idle1630
love-in-idle1664
trinity1699
fancy1712
wood violet1713
marsh violet1753
tree violet1753
kiss-me-at-the-gate1787
bird's-foot violet1802
Parma violet1812
Johnny-jump-up1827
stepmother1828
Neapolitan violet1830
garden gate1842
butterfly pea1848
kissa1852
pinkany-John1854
viola1871
kiss-me1877
pink-eyed John1877
face and hood1886
roosterhead1894
trout-lily1909
1578 H. Lyte tr. R. Dodoens Niewe Herball ii. 148 The sweete Violet is called..in Latine Viola nigra, Viola purpurea.
1785 T. Martyn tr. J.-J. Rousseau Lett. Elements Bot. xxvi. 407 The Sweet Violet, that scents the banks, hedges and borders of woods.
1853 J. F. Royle Man. Materia Med. (ed. 2) 327 The..Sweet Violet..is found wild on the borders of fields.
three coloured violet n.
Π
1597 J. Gerard Herball ii. 705 The vpright Pancie is called..Viola assurgens,..Tricolor, that is to say Straight, or vpright Violet three coloured.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Viola The mountain three coloured Violet, or pansie, with variegated flowers.
tree violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > allied flowers
pansyc1450
heartsease1530
pansy flower1530
three (also two) faces under (or in) a (or one) hood1548
bulbous violet1578
love-in-idleness1578
sweet violet1578
pensea1592
cull-me-to-you1597
dog's tooth violet1597
dog violet1597
kiss-me-ere-I-rise1597
live in idleness1597
wild violet1597
yellow violet1597
love-and-idle1630
love-in-idle1664
trinity1699
fancy1712
wood violet1713
marsh violet1753
tree violet1753
kiss-me-at-the-gate1787
bird's-foot violet1802
Parma violet1812
Johnny-jump-up1827
stepmother1828
Neapolitan violet1830
garden gate1842
butterfly pea1848
kissa1852
pinkany-John1854
viola1871
kiss-me1877
pink-eyed John1877
face and hood1886
roosterhead1894
trout-lily1909
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Viola The tree Violet, with blue and white flowers.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Viola The yellow-flowered tree Violet.
1850 G. Glenny Hand-bk. Flower Garden 164 The tree-violet is a double-flowered, dark variety, which, if kept trained to a single stem, acquires the appearance of a miniature tree.
tricoloured violet n.
Π
1846–50 A. Wood Class-bk. Bot. 178 Viola tricolor. Tricolored Violet. Pansey. Heart's-ease.
wild violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > allied flowers
pansyc1450
heartsease1530
pansy flower1530
three (also two) faces under (or in) a (or one) hood1548
bulbous violet1578
love-in-idleness1578
sweet violet1578
pensea1592
cull-me-to-you1597
dog's tooth violet1597
dog violet1597
kiss-me-ere-I-rise1597
live in idleness1597
wild violet1597
yellow violet1597
love-and-idle1630
love-in-idle1664
trinity1699
fancy1712
wood violet1713
marsh violet1753
tree violet1753
kiss-me-at-the-gate1787
bird's-foot violet1802
Parma violet1812
Johnny-jump-up1827
stepmother1828
Neapolitan violet1830
garden gate1842
butterfly pea1848
kissa1852
pinkany-John1854
viola1871
kiss-me1877
pink-eyed John1877
face and hood1886
roosterhead1894
trout-lily1909
1597 J. Gerard Herball ii. 700 Viola canina syluestris. Dogs Violets, or wilde Violets.
1731 P. Miller Gardeners Dict. I. at Viola Wild or Dogs Violet.
wood violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > allied flowers
pansyc1450
heartsease1530
pansy flower1530
three (also two) faces under (or in) a (or one) hood1548
bulbous violet1578
love-in-idleness1578
sweet violet1578
pensea1592
cull-me-to-you1597
dog's tooth violet1597
dog violet1597
kiss-me-ere-I-rise1597
live in idleness1597
wild violet1597
yellow violet1597
love-and-idle1630
love-in-idle1664
trinity1699
fancy1712
wood violet1713
marsh violet1753
tree violet1753
kiss-me-at-the-gate1787
bird's-foot violet1802
Parma violet1812
Johnny-jump-up1827
stepmother1828
Neapolitan violet1830
garden gate1842
butterfly pea1848
kissa1852
pinkany-John1854
viola1871
kiss-me1877
pink-eyed John1877
face and hood1886
roosterhead1894
trout-lily1909
1713 J. Petiver Catal. Ray's Eng. Herbal Hairy Wood Violet.
1836 J. C. Loudon Encycl. Plants (rev. ed.) 186 Viola sylvestris, wood violet.
1903 Westm. Gaz. 19 Feb. 4/2 Such pretty toques of wood violets are coming over from Paris!
yellow violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > allied flowers
pansyc1450
heartsease1530
pansy flower1530
three (also two) faces under (or in) a (or one) hood1548
bulbous violet1578
love-in-idleness1578
sweet violet1578
pensea1592
cull-me-to-you1597
dog's tooth violet1597
dog violet1597
kiss-me-ere-I-rise1597
live in idleness1597
wild violet1597
yellow violet1597
love-and-idle1630
love-in-idle1664
trinity1699
fancy1712
wood violet1713
marsh violet1753
tree violet1753
kiss-me-at-the-gate1787
bird's-foot violet1802
Parma violet1812
Johnny-jump-up1827
stepmother1828
Neapolitan violet1830
garden gate1842
butterfly pea1848
kissa1852
pinkany-John1854
viola1871
kiss-me1877
pink-eyed John1877
face and hood1886
roosterhead1894
trout-lily1909
1597 J. Gerard Herball ii. 700 Viola martia lutea. Yellow Violets.
1657 W. Coles Adam in Eden 175 Yellow Violets of Virginia.
1796 W. Withering Arrangem. Brit. Plants (ed. 3) II. 263 Viola lutea. Yellow Violet or Pansies.
b. Applied to plants of other genera.See also bog n.1 Compounds 2, calathian adj., corn n.1 Compounds 4, dame's-violet n., Guernsey n., Marian n.2 2, mercury n. Compounds 2, queen n. Compounds 3c, rape n.5 Compounds 1, water n.
bulbed violet n.
Π
1597 J. Gerard Herball i. 121 Viola Bulbosa, or bulbed Violet... In English we may call it the Bulbose Violet.
bulbous violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > allied flowers
pansyc1450
heartsease1530
pansy flower1530
three (also two) faces under (or in) a (or one) hood1548
bulbous violet1578
love-in-idleness1578
sweet violet1578
pensea1592
cull-me-to-you1597
dog's tooth violet1597
dog violet1597
kiss-me-ere-I-rise1597
live in idleness1597
wild violet1597
yellow violet1597
love-and-idle1630
love-in-idle1664
trinity1699
fancy1712
wood violet1713
marsh violet1753
tree violet1753
kiss-me-at-the-gate1787
bird's-foot violet1802
Parma violet1812
Johnny-jump-up1827
stepmother1828
Neapolitan violet1830
garden gate1842
butterfly pea1848
kissa1852
pinkany-John1854
viola1871
kiss-me1877
pink-eyed John1877
face and hood1886
roosterhead1894
trout-lily1909
1578 H. Lyte tr. R. Dodoens Niewe Herball liv. 216 White bulbus violet.
1633 T. Johnson Gerard's Herball (new ed.) i. 149 Touching the faculties of these bulbous Violets we haue nothing to say.
1688 R. Holme Acad. Armory ii. 66/2 The bulbous Violet;..the Flower hangeth down its head.
1760 J. Lee Introd. Bot. App. 331 Violet, Bulbous, Galanthus.
dog's tooth violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > pea flowers > violet and allied flowers > allied flowers
pansyc1450
heartsease1530
pansy flower1530
three (also two) faces under (or in) a (or one) hood1548
bulbous violet1578
love-in-idleness1578
sweet violet1578
pensea1592
cull-me-to-you1597
dog's tooth violet1597
dog violet1597
kiss-me-ere-I-rise1597
live in idleness1597
wild violet1597
yellow violet1597
love-and-idle1630
love-in-idle1664
trinity1699
fancy1712
wood violet1713
marsh violet1753
tree violet1753
kiss-me-at-the-gate1787
bird's-foot violet1802
Parma violet1812
Johnny-jump-up1827
stepmother1828
Neapolitan violet1830
garden gate1842
butterfly pea1848
kissa1852
pinkany-John1854
viola1871
kiss-me1877
pink-eyed John1877
face and hood1886
roosterhead1894
trout-lily1909
1597 J. Gerard Herball ii. 835 The Toothed Violet, or after some Dogs tooth Violet, is commonly called Dentaria.
1760 J. Lee Introd. Bot. App. 331 Violet, Dog's Tooth, Erythronium.
false violet n.
Π
1846–50 A. Wood Class-bk. Bot. 253 Dalibarda repens. False Violet.
rock violet n.
Π
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. II. 1218/2 Rock Violet, Chroolepus Jolithus.
sea violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > of unidentified or unspecified type
honeysuckOE
honeysucklea1300
floscampya1398
poppya1400
siphany1509
flour-dammesa1522
ageratum1567
rose of Sharon1585
belamour1595
sea violet1601
Bacchus-bole1725
eel-pout1736
torch-flower1849
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. 85 In number of leaves this floure passeth the Sea-violet aforesaid, which never exceedeth five.
1725 R. Bradley Chomel's Dictionaire Œconomique (at cited word) Mr. Chomel particularly distinguishes them into two sorts, viz. the Sea-Violet, or our Lady-Glove, and March-Violets.
Spanish violet n.
Π
1657 W. Coles Adam in Eden 333 Some have called the yellow Lupine Spanish Violets,..and..Virginia Roses.
toothed violet n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > Cruciferae (crucifers) > [noun] > toothwort or pepperwort
dentarie1578
coralwort1597
toothed violet1597
toothwort1668
dentaria1819
crinkleroot1847
pepperwort1854
tooth-cress1863
1597 J. Gerard Herball ii. 833 Of toothed Violets, or Corallwoorts.
1728 R. Bradley Dict. Botanicum (at cited word) Dentaria,..Toothed Violets, and Coral-Wort.
1728 R. Bradley Dict. Botanicum (at cited word) Bulb-bearing toothed Violet.
C2.
a. General attributive.
violet bank n.
Π
1801 R. Southey Thalaba II. vii. 60 So on a violet bank The Arabian Maid lay down, Her soft cheek pillowed upon moss and flowers.
a1822 P. B. Shelley Triumph of Life in Posthumous Poems (1824) 76 Violet banks where sweet dreams brood.
violet-bed n.
Π
1853 W. J. Hickie tr. Aristophanes Comedies II. 267 The violet-bed beside the well.
violet breath n.
Π
1862 G. Meredith Mod. Love xl The violet breath of maidenhood.
violet crown n. the city of the Violet Crown, Athens (after Greek ἰοστέϕανοι Ἀθῆναι, used by Pindar and Aristophanes)
ΘΠ
the world > the earth > named regions of earth > named cities or towns > [noun] > in Greece > Athens
violet crown1834
1834 T. B. Macaulay William Pitt in Ess. (1897) 308 Pitt..loved England, as an Athenian loved the City of the Violet Crown.
1851 E. B. Browning Casa Guidi Windows i. ii. 3 Was the violet crown that crowned thy head So over large..It slipped down..?
1877 J. Morley Crit. Misc. 2nd Ser. 385 A thrill like that which the..sight of the dear city of the Violet Crown moved in an Athenian of old.
violet family n.
Π
1849 J. H. Balfour Man. Bot. §768 Violaceæ, the Violet Family.
violet flower n.
Π
a1400–50 Alexander 1539 He castis on a Cape of kastand hewes,..A vestoure to vise on of violet floures.
1598 J. Florio Worlde of Wordes Violina, a little violet flowre.
1620 T. Venner Via Recta vii. 147 Of Violet flowers with sugar, there is made a Conserue, and also a Syrupe.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Viola Violet flowers, fresh gathered, are emollient, and gently purgative.
1815 W. Scott Lord of Isles vi. ix. 232 When beams the sun through April's shower, It needs must bloom, the violet flower.
violet honey n.
Π
1658 J. Rowland tr. T. Moffett Theater of Insects in Topsell's Hist. Four-footed Beasts (rev. ed.) 908 Grape~honey, Bean-honey, Lilly-honey, Violet-honey, &c.
violet leaf n.
Π
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. (at cited word) Populeum, An Unguent prepared of the Buds of black Poplar, Violet Leaves, Navel-wort, and Lard.
violet order n.
Π
1857 A. Henfrey Elem. Course Bot. §416 Violaceæ. The Violet Order.
violet path n.
Π
a1822 P. B. Shelley Charles I i, in Wks. (1870) II. 374 Nor leave the broad..and beaten road..For the violet paths of pleasure.
violet root n.
Π
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Violier,..a Violet root or plant.
violet smell n.
Π
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. at Oil Palm Oil [is]..a thick unctuous Liquor, of a yellow Colour, and a Violet-smell.
1804 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 12 230 The flowers have a violet smell.
violet soap n.
Π
1814 Intrigues of Day i. i, in New Brit. Theatre I. 76 That may soon be washed away. Only a little milk of roses, or violet soap, and all will be well.
violet-tide n.
Π
1828 M. R. Mitford Our Village (1863) III. 117 here I used to come almost every morning, during the violet-tide.
violet tuft n.
Π
1862 E. M. Goulburn Thoughts Personal Relig. I. ii. iv. 261 Here is the bosom-adder of vanity coiled up in the violet-tuft of humility.
violet virtue n.
Π
1628 O. Felltham Resolves: 2nd Cent. vi. sig. H6v It may seeme strange..that such a poore violet Vertue [sc. humility] should euer dwell with Honour.
violet water n.
Π
1620 T. Venner Via Recta vii. 125 If there be neede of cooling with Rose, or Violet~water and Sugar.
b. In adjectival combinations, chiefly instrumental.
violet-adorned adj.
Π
1953 C. Day Lewis Ital. Visit iii. 37 Violet-adorned beauties.
violet-crowned adj.
Π
1837 B. D. Walsh tr. Aristophanes Acharnians ii. vi, in Comedies 61 The envoys.., in order to cheat your Assemblies, would call you all ‘violet-crowned’.
1869 A. R. Wallace Malay Archipel. I. 366 A beautiful violet-crowned dove.
violet-dewy adj.
Π
1932 E. Blunden Halfway House 73 All fresh and violet-dewy.
violet-embroidered adj.
Π
1637 J. Milton Comus 9 In the violet-imbroider'd vale Where the love-lorne Nightingale Nightly to thee her sad Song mourneth well.
violet-garlanded adj.
Π
1837 B. D. Walsh tr. Aristophanes Knights v. i, in Comedies 255 He is dwelling now in ancient and fair and violet-garlanded Athens.
violet-hued adj.
Π
1867 M. E. Braddon R. Godwin i There were no tears in the large violet-hued eyes.
violet-inwoven adj.
Π
1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound iv. i. 133 Two runnels of a rivulet, Between the close moss violet-inwoven, Have made their path of melody.
violet-like adj.
Π
1824 J. C. Loudon Green-house Compan. i. 107 Purple violet-like flowers on coriaceous roundish leaves.
violet-rippling adj.
Π
1949 E. Blunden After Bombing 29 And some have sung though never seen Melodious, voiceful, violet-rippling, blushful Hippocrene.
violet-scented adj.
Π
1840 C. Norton Dream 238 The violet-scented lanes—the warm south-wall.
1859 ‘G. Eliot’ Adam Bede I. i. xii. 240 An afternoon in which destiny..poisons us with violet-scented breath.
violet-sweet adj.
Π
1851 E. B. Browning Casa Guidi Windows i. x. 28 Like a new bee-swarm leaving the old hive Despite the wax..which tempteth violet-sweet.
c. With verbal nouns, as violet farming, violet-plucking, violet-poisoning, violet setting.
Π
c1440 Pallad. on Husb. (1896) 268 Violette settyng in Feuerer.
1833 T. Hook Parson's Daughter I. i. 11 Daisy-picking and violet-plucking [were now] the only pursuits she really loved.
1896 Westm. Gaz. 28 Oct. 8/2 The above case of violet-poisoning.
1902 Daily Chron. 17 July 6/3 Rose culture, violet farming, bee-keeping, or poultry rearing.
C3. Special combinations:† violet-apple n. Obsolete a violet-scented sort of apple.† violet-pear n. Obsolete a violet-scented sort of pear.† violet tables n. Obsolete lozenges made from violets and sugar.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular types of fruit > [noun] > apple > other apples
Bretonc1390
stur1483
marigold apple1577
fritter1591
Margaret1597
critling1611
cat's-head1617
rosiar1620
rose apple1626
snouting1651
roundling1655
mayflower1664
red greening1664
seaming1664
sheep's snout1664
spicing apple1664
violet-apple1664
pomme d'api1676
rathe-ripe1677
rose1678
lady's finger1688
stone apple1736
sops-in-wine1764
stone pippin1769
Manx codlin1818
Rymer1820
Roxbury russet1826
souring1832
genet1833
tompot1836
Wagener1848
flesh and blood1853
pick-thong1871
virgin1886
Jon1931
Idared1942
1664 S. Taylor in J. Evelyn Pomona in Sylva 47 Herefordshire affords several sorts of Cider-apples, as..the Gennet-moyle, the Summer-violet or Fillet, and the Winter-fillet.
1676 J. Worlidge Vinetum Britannicum 163 The Violet-Apple is of a most delicate aromatick taste.
violet-blind adj. colour-blind as regards the violet rays of the spectrum.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of eye > disordered vision > [adjective] > colour blind
dichromic1836
dichromatic1842
colour-blind1847
green-blind1868
red-blind1873
blue-blind1877
red–green1878
achromatopsic1883
dyschromatoptic1886
colour-weak1893
violet-blind1894
monochromatic1897
protanopic1898
protanomalous1911
tritanopic1915
deuteranomalous1932
tritanomalous1943
colour-defective1958
protan1961
1894 W. de W. Abney Colour Vision (1895) 70 The kind of colour that these colour blind imagine as white, whether they be red-, green-, or violet-blind.
violet-blindness n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of eye > disordered vision > [noun] > colour blindness
Daltonism1841
xanthopsia1842
colour blindness1844
chromatopsia1848
achromatopsia1849
chromatometablepsy1849
chromatopseudopsy1849
acritochromacy1855
dichromatism1859
blue-blindness1868
green-blindness1868
red-blindness1868
chromatopsy1879
red vision1880
dyschromatopsia1890
xanthocyanopy1890
xanthocyanopsy1891
dichromacy1892
monochromatism1893
violet-blindness1894
monochromacy1900
deuteranopia1901
protanopia1902
tritanopia1915
deuteranomaly1932
protanomaly1932
tritanomaly1943
1894 W. de W. Abney Colour Vision (1895) 73 So far I have only met with what appears to be one genuine case of violet blindness.
violet cream n. (a) a violet-scented cosmetic cream; (b) a violet-flavoured confection.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautification of the person > beautification of the skin or complexion > [noun] > preparations for the skin or complexion > unguents or moisturizers
oil of talc1582
slick1626
cold cream1709
cream1765
amandin1861
face cream1889
skin food1892
skin cream1894
orange-flower skin food1908
violet cream1912
day cream1915
vanishing cream1916
night cream1926
orange skin food1926
baby oil1930
hormone cream1938
moisture cream1957
moisturizer1957
mousse1971
the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > confections or sweetmeats > sweets > [noun] > a sweet > other sweets
scrochat1448
gobbet riala1500
Portugal1560
sugar-pellet1591
muscadine1599
moscardino1616
rock candy1653
covering-seeds1687
lollipop1784
turn-over1798
lavender-sugar1810
humbug1825
kiss1825
elecampane1826
Gibraltar1831
yellow man1831
rose cake1834
cockle1835
maple candy1840
butterscotch1847
sponge candy1850
squib1851
honeycomb1857
marshmallow1857
motto kiss1858
fondant1861
coffee cream1868
candy-braid1870
candy bar1885
suckabob1888
nut bar1896
crackerjack1902
teiglach1903
red-hot1910
violet cream1912
mouldy1916
patty1916
lace1919
Tootsie Roll1925
sugar mouse1931
Parma1971
cinder toffee1979
1912 J. Webster Daddy-Long-Legs 203 I started down town to-day to buy..a jar of violet cream and a cake of Castile soap.
1965 A. Christie At Bertram's Hotel xxi. 194 They were lovely chocolates... There were some violet creams. That's the sort of chocolate that has a crystallised violet on top.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular types of fruit > [noun] > pear > other types of
calewey1377
honey peara1400
pome-pear1440
pome-wardena1513
choke-pear1530
muscadel1555
worry pear1562
lording1573
bon-chrétienc1575
Burgundian pear1578
king pear1585
pound pear1585
poppering1597
wood of Jerusalem1597
muscadine1598
amiot1600
bergamot1600
butter pear1600
dew-pear1600
greening1600
mollart1600
roset1600
wax pear1600
bottle pear1601
gourd-pear1601
Venerian pear1601
musk pear1611
rose pear1611
pusill1615
Christian1629
nutmeg1629
rolling pear1629
surreine1629
sweater1629
amber pear1638
Venus-pear1648
horse-pear1657
Martin1658
russet1658
rousselet1660
diego1664
frith-pear1664
maudlin1664
Messire Jean1664
primate1664
sovereign1664
spindle-pear1664
stopple-pear1664
sugar-pear1664
virgin1664
Windsor pear1664
violet-pear1666
nonsuch1674
muscat1675
burnt-cat1676
squash pear1676
rose1678
Longueville1681
maiden-heart1685
ambrette1686
vermilion1691
admiral1693
sanguinole1693
satin1693
St. Germain pear1693
pounder pear1697
vine-pear1704
amadot1706
marchioness1706
marquise1706
Margaret1707
short-neck1707
musk1708
burree1719
marquis1728
union pear1728
Doyenne pear1731
Magdalene1731
beurré1736
colmar1736
Monsieur Jean1736
muscadella1736
swan's egg1736
chaumontel1755
St Michael's pear1796
Williams1807
Marie Louise1817
seckel1817
Bartlett1828
vergaloo1828
Passe Colmar1837
glou-morceau1859
London sugar1860
snow-pear1860
Comice1866
Kieffer pear1880
sand pear1880
sandy pear1884
snowy pear1884
1666 J. Evelyn Kalendarium Hortense (ed. 2) 92 Pears..Violet-pear, Petworth-pear.
violet powder n. a variety of toilet-powder.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautification of the person > beautification of the skin or complexion > [noun] > preparations for the skin or complexion > powders
powder1538
rice powder1772
face powder1788
toilet powder1833
French white1844
baby powder1853
violet powder1856
poudre de riz1859
splash1863
papier poudré1907
powder cake1925
1856 C. Dickens Little Dorrit (1857) ii. ii. 338 She mended her complexion with violet powder.
1858 P. L. Simmonds Dict. Trade Products Violet-powder, powdered starch or flour scented, used..to powder the skin.
1859 Habits Good Society i. 114 The use of violet-powder after shaving, now very common.., is one that should be avoided.
violet-powder v.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautification of the person > beautification of the skin or complexion > beautify (the skin or complexion) [verb (transitive)] > powder
pounce1610
puff1809
powder1870
violet-powder1876
talcum1923
talc1976
1876 R. Broughton Joan vi She has, however, violet-powdered her fresh cheeks.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > confections or sweetmeats > sweets > [noun] > a sweet > drop, lozenge, or comfit
comfit1334
pastille1451
table1580
confect1587
violet tables1620
sugar-pluma1668
plum1694
nonpareil1697
rose drop1727
lemon-drop1807
drop1818
jujube1835
pear drop1852
pandrop1877
conversation lozenge1905
cushion1906
fruit drop1907
1620 T. Venner Via Recta vii. 147 There is..made of Violets and Sugar, certaine Plates, called Violet Tables, which are very pleasant to the taste.
violet tea n. an infusion made from dried violet flowers.
ΘΠ
the world > food and drink > drink > infused leaves, flowers, or fruit > [noun] > others
coltsfoota1627
sage tea?1706
pippin tea1709
lemon-tea1725
foltron1748
camomile-tea1753
sassafras tea1783
spruce tea1783
mountain tea1785
cow-slip tea1796
miserable1842
peppermint tea1844
violet tea1853
Swiss tea1860
coffee-tea1866
Jesuits' tea1866
St. Helena tea1875
cotton-leaf tea1881
tamarind watera1883
tamarind tea1883
mullein tea1887
rosehip tea1947
1853 E. C. Gaskell Ruth III. iii. 115 She..brought her up a cup of soothing violet-tea.
1904 Cassell's New Dict. Cookery xviii. 1033/1 Violet tea, this is a soothing beverage for persons suffering from bronchitis and similar affections.
violet tree n. (?)
Π
1878 H. M. Stanley Through Dark Continent II. ix. 281 You may also see here [i.e. Barundu] the Strelitza vagina, or the wild banana, or the violet-tree, and the oil-berry tree.
violet-wood n. (a) kingwood; (b) the wood of the Australian Acacia pendula; (c) the wood of Andira violacea, a tree of Guyana.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > wood > wood of specific trees > [noun] > other woods of South American trees
letterwood1655
kingwood1788
canary wood1822
saouari wooda1832
macaco-wood1835
paddlewood1837
quebracho1839
mustaiba1843
violet-wood1843
taigu wood1868
rauli1874
louro1914
balsa wood1917
palisander1930
1698 tr. F. Froger Relation Voy. Coasts Afr. 129 Letter-wood (as they call it) and that of Violet,..are very common in that country.
1843 C. Holtzapffel Turning & Mech. Manip. I. 89 King-wood, called also Violet-wood, is imported from the Brazils.
1852 G. C. Mundy Our Antipodes I. x. 316 Dandy amateur bushmen have the handle of their stock-whip made of the Myâl, Acacia pendula, or violet wood.
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. II. 1218/2.
violetworts n. Lindley's name for the Violaceæ.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > Violaceae > [noun]
viola1731
violals1846
violetworts1846
1846 J. Lindley Veg. Kingdom 338 The Violet~worts are distinctly defined by their definite stamens.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1917; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
† violetn.2
Obsolete. rare.
(See quot. 1688 and cf. violette n.)
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > musical instrument > stringed instruments > bowable instrument > [noun] > violin
violon1552
violin1579
violet1688
catgut1709
macaroni fiddle1777
violan1850
1688 R. Holme Acad. Armory (1905) iii. xvi. 58/1 The Violet or Violin, a diminitiue of the viol, being a very small Instrument, yet in all respects answereth to the forme of the Treble Viole in the body.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1917; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
violetadj.
/ˈvʌɪəlᵻt/, U.S. /ˈvaɪ(ə)lət/ a. Having the colour of violets; of a blue or bluish-purple colour.In early use only of woven fabrics.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > purple or purpleness > [adjective] > bluish purple
violet1370
blue-violeta1382
blue-purple?a1425
violet-coloured1552
bluish-purple1578
ianthine1609
amethystine1651
amethyst1807
pansy purple1814
violety1831
violescent1847
violetish1871
pansy-coloured1891
1370 in S. Tymms Wills & Inventories Bury St. Edmunds (1850) 5 j violett toga.
c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 509/2 Vialet, yn colowre, violaceus.
1464 Maldon (Essex) Court Rolls (Bundle 40, No. 6) ii togas blewe et vyolette, 1 dobelet.
c1481 in H. E. Malden Cely Papers (1900) (Camden) 202 Item iij stykkes of tarny sateyn or els vyelett sateyn of Bruges.
1524 Lincoln Wills (1914) I. 130 A violitt reband with silver aglyttes.
1541 in F. Collins Wills & Admin. Knaresborough Court Rolls (1902) I. 34 A violet jakett.
1544 in F. Collins Wills & Admin. Knaresborough Court Rolls (1902) I. 42 To Agnes Gill my violett kirtell.
1579 Reg. Privy Council Scotl. III. 195 Thre single pandis, freinyeit with violet silk.
a1630 F. Moryson in Shakespeare's Europe (1903) v. i. 438 Next rode some 20. of the Popes Chamberlayns and cheefe officers, cloathed in gownes of violett Cloth.
1812 H. Davy Elements Chem. Philos. 223 The luminous particles at the violet end of the spectrum.
1857 W. A. Miller Elements Chem. III. viii. 537 Boiling nitric acid colours it violet.
1884 Marquis of Dufferin in A. Lyall Life Marquis of Dufferin (1905) II. 64 Directly fronting you, rises a magnificent violet stretch of mountain.
b. Qualifying colour, hue, tint, etc.
ΚΠ
c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) xvii. 80 Men find dyamaundz of violet colour.
1548 T. Cooper Bibliotheca Eliotæ (rev. ed.) Violarius, he that dieth violet colour.
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. 621 There is not one of these Ameythysts, but it is transparent with a Violet colour.
1622–3 Essex Archdeaconry Depositions Bk. (MS.) 27 Feb. 26 One cloake for a man made of broade cloath and of a violett couler.
1648 H. Hexham Groot Woorden-boeck Een Violette verwe, a Violet dye or colour.
1706 G. London & H. Wise Retir'd Gard'ner I. i. ix. 41 The Maugeron is [a plum] of a Violet Colour, large and round.
1750 tr. C. Leonardus Mirror of Stones 79 The carbuncle brandishes its fiery rays, of a violet colour, on every side.
1800 tr. E. J. B. Bouillon-Lagrange Man. Course Chem. I. 419 Hydrogen gas alters the colour of bismuth, and gives it a violet tint.
1834 J. Forbes tr. R. T. H. Laennec Treat. Dis. Chest (ed. 4) 465 The lung..was of a violet hue, soft and flabby.
a1878 W. Carleton Farm Ballads (1893) 84 The squire swore oaths of a violet hue.
c. Qualifying names of other colours, as violet black, violet blue, etc.In later use frequently hyphenated (cf. sense d), and in some cases (esp. violet-blue) also representing the noun used attributively.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > blue or blueness > [adjective] > purplish blue
hyacinthine1656
violaceous1657
violaceana1711
lilac-blue1851
hyacinthian1858
hyacinth1876
lavender1882
violet blue1882
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. at Red In Limning, and Fresco, for a Violet Red, instead of Lacca they use a natural Earth found in England.
1782 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds I. ii. 754 The quills of a violet brown.
1819 J. F. Stephens Shaw's Gen. Zool. XI. i. 3 The wings..are of a fine deep violet-blue.
1843 Florist's Jrnl. (1846) 4 111 Flower-spike producing three to four flowers, and very handsome, of a beautiful violet~purple.
1882 Garden 17 June 418/1 The petals..bordered with violet-crimson.
d. Forming adjectival compounds, as violet-black, violet-blue, etc.Many examples occur in Shaw's Gen. Zool.
ΚΠ
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iv, in tr. Virgil Wks. 134 From one Root the rising Stem bestows A Wood of Leaves, and vi'let-purple Boughs. View more context for this quotation
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Star-wort The tall hairy New England aster with very large violet-purple flowers.
1802 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. III. ii. 423 Violet-black Snake, with the abdomen and sides crimson.
1819 J. F. Stephens Shaw's Gen. Zool. XI. i. 59 The upper parts of the body [are] violet-red.
1838 T. Thomson Chem. Org. Bodies 746 The whole liquid assumes a very strong and fine violet-blue colour.
1887 W. Phillips Man. Brit. Discomycetes 70 Hymenium violet-brown; juice violet.
e. Applied to days on which liturgical violet is used.
ΚΠ
1931 E. C. Trenholme Angl. Low Mass 46 The Gloria is said on Sundays and all feasts and every day in octaves, except the violet Sundays in Advent and from Septuagesima to Easter.
Compounds
C1.
a. In names of varieties of fruits or plants, as violet clover, violet maize, violet plum, etc. Also elliptical.
ΚΠ
1706 G. London & H. Wise Retir'd Gard'ner I. ii. 147 The Fourth [kind is] the Violet Fig.
1706 G. London & H. Wise Retir'd Gard'ner I. ii. 147 The Violet ripens perfectly well.
a1722 E. Lisle Observ. Husbandry (1757) 379 A violet-plum, a standard,..which is a plum that does not cleave from the stone.
1725 R. Bradley Chomel's Dictionaire Œconomique at Plum The Violet Damson or Maugeron Plum.
1772 J. Adams tr. A. de Ulloa Voy. S. Amer. (ed. 3) II. 140 They first pulverize the cochineal by grinding, and after mixing four ounces of it, with twelve of violet maize, they form it into square cakes.
1786 J. Abercrombie Arrangem. Plants 13 in Gardeners Daily Assistant Cherry plum, Violet plum, Apricot plum.
1860 R. Hogg Fruit Man. 72 [Figs]. Skin dark. Flesh red... Early Violet.
1860 R. Hogg Fruit Man. 251 Purple Gage (..Violet Gage).
1867 Chambers's Encycl. IX. 803/2 The Violet Moss (Byssus Iolithus)..was formerly in use as a popular remedy for feverish cutaneous eruptions.
1890 Times 22 Sept. 4/2 The cut of violet clovers in France is not likely to be large.
b. In names of birds, insects, etc.Latham's names are repeated in Shaw's Gen. Zool. (1811–26).
(a)
violet bee n.
ΚΠ
a1818 Encycl. Metrop. (1845) XIV. 153/1 A violet bee, which they now sent off [from the balloon], flew quickly away with its usual humming noise.
c1882 Cassell's Nat. Hist. V. 367 The Violet Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa violacea)..inhabits the south of Europe.
violet cormorant n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Pelecaniformes > [noun] > family Phalacrocoracidae > miscellaneous types of
scout1596
violet cormorant1785
guanay1860
nigger goose1909
1785 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds III. iii. ii. 600 Violet Corvorant... This bird is said to be wholly black, glossed with violet.
1826 J. F. Stephens Shaw's Gen. Zool. XIII. i. 86 Violet Cormorant, Phalacrocorax violaceus.
violet crab n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Crustacea > [noun] > subclass Malacostraca > division Thoracostraca > order Decapoda > suborder Brachyura (crab) > miscellaneous or unspecified types of crab
sea lion1601
blue crab1763
violet crab1774
angular crab1777
red crab1825
softshell1830
turtle-crab1838
porcellanian1840
Thelphusian1842
lady crab1844
oxystome1852
lobster-crab1854
porcelain crab1854
ochidore1855
havil1857
mask crab1857
sepoy crab1857
violet land crab1864
frog crab1876
stool-crab1880
paper-shell1890
porter crab1904
mitten crab1934
1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth VI. 368 The Violet Crab of the Carribee Islands.
1895 Pall Mall Gaz. 26 July 2/3 The much advertised land-crabs are precisely the same ‘violet crab’..found on similar tropical islands.
violet creeper n.
ΚΠ
1782 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds I. ii. 705 Violet Creeper.
violet grosbeak n.
ΚΠ
1815 J. F. Stephens Shaw's Gen. Zool. IX. ii. 249 Violet Grosbeak, with a streak above the eyes.
violet heron n.
ΚΠ
1785 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds III. i. 97 Violet Heron,..of a blueish black, glossed with violet.
violet humming bird n.
ΚΠ
1782 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds I. ii. 756 Violet Humming Bird;..the whole head, the neck, back, breast, and belly, of a violet purple.
violet land crab n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Crustacea > [noun] > subclass Malacostraca > division Thoracostraca > order Decapoda > suborder Brachyura (crab) > miscellaneous or unspecified types of crab
sea lion1601
blue crab1763
violet crab1774
angular crab1777
red crab1825
softshell1830
turtle-crab1838
porcellanian1840
Thelphusian1842
lady crab1844
oxystome1852
lobster-crab1854
porcelain crab1854
ochidore1855
havil1857
mask crab1857
sepoy crab1857
violet land crab1864
frog crab1876
stool-crab1880
paper-shell1890
porter crab1904
mitten crab1934
1864–5 J. G. Wood Homes without Hands (1868) iv. 88 The Violet Land Crab of Jamaica (Gecarcinus ruricola) is the most familiar of these creatures.
violet pygmy n.
ΚΠ
1832 J. Rennie Conspectus Butterflies & Moths Brit. 205 The Violet Pygmy (Microsetia violaceella). Wings:..first pair deep black, with a tinge of violet.
violet shag n.
ΚΠ
1785 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds III. iii. ii. 600 Violet Shag. Violet Corvorant.
violet shell n.
ΚΠ
1858 W. Baird Cycl. Nat. Sci. 307/2 Janthina. The Violet Shells.—A genus of molluscous animals belonging to the class Gasteropoda.
violet snail n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > subkingdom Metazoa > grade Triploblastica or Coelomata > class Gastropoda > [noun] > superorder Branchifera > order Prosobranchiata > section Holostomata > family Ianthinidae > member of genus Ianthina
carvel1657
purple shell1675
caravel1707
violet snail1845
1845 P. H. Gosse Ocean (1849) vii. 343 The Violet-snail (Janthina fragilis),..whose shell..is of a pearly white above, and beneath violet.
1873 J. W. Dawson Story Earth & Man iv. 76 Those singular molluscous swimmers by fin or float known to zoologists as violet-snails.
violet swallow n.
ΚΠ
1783 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds II. ii. 574 Violet Swallow,..general colour of the plumage deep blue, reflecting violet in different tints.
violet tanager n.
ΚΠ
1781 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds I. i. 222 Violet Tanager,..colour of the plumage a deep violet.
violet thrush n.
ΚΠ
1781 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds I. i. 57 Violet Thrush,..the whole plumage of a changeable violet blue.
(b)
violet-ear n. one or other species of the genus Petasophora of hummingbirds.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > perching birds > order Apodiformes > [noun] > family Trochilidae (humming-bird) > member of genus Colibri
colibri1740
honeybird1794
violet-ear1861
1861 J. Gould Monogr. Trochilidæ IV. Pl. 223 Brazilian Violet-ear.
1861 J. Gould Monogr. Trochilidæ IV. Pl. 226 Mexican Violet-ear.
1887 R. B. Sharpe Gould's Trochilidæ Suppl. V. Pl. 1 Petasophora Germana, Guiana Violet-ear.
violet-fly n. an artificial fly used in angling.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > means of attracting fish > [noun] > artificial fly > types of
moor flylOE
drake-flya1450
dub-flya1450
dun cut1496
dun fly1496
louper1496
red fly1616
moorish fly1635
palmer1653
palmer fly1653
red hackle1653
red palmer1653
shell-fly1653
orange fly1662
blackfly1669
dun1676
dun hackle1676
hackle1676
mayfly1676
peacock fly1676
thorn-tree fly1676
turkey-fly1676
violet-fly1676
whirling dun1676
badger fly1681
greenfly1686
moorish brown1689
prime dun1696
sandfly1700
grey midge1724
whirling blue1747
dun drake?1758
death drake1766
hackle fly1786
badger1787
blue1787
brown-fly1787
camel-brown1787
spinner1787
midge1799
night-fly1799
thorn-fly1799
turkey1799
withy-fly1799
grayling fly1811
sun fly1820
cock-a-bondy1835
brown moth1837
bunting-lark fly1837
governor1837
water-hen hackle1837
Waterloo fly1837
coachman1839
soldier palmer1839
blue jay1843
red tag1850
canary1855
white-tip1856
spider1857
bumble1859
doctor1860
ibis1863
Jock Scott1866
eagle1867
highlander1867
jay1867
John Scott1867
judge1867
parson1867
priest1867
snow-fly1867
Jack Scott1874
Alexandra1875
silver doctor1875
Alexandra fly1882
grackle1894
grizzly queen1894
heckle-fly1897
Zulu1898
thunder and lightning1910
streamer1919
Devon1924
peacock1950
1676 C. Cotton Compleat Angler (1875) ii. vii. 255 A fly called the Violet-Fly; made of a dark violet stuff; with the wings, of a grey feather of a mallard.
1787 T. Best Conc. Treat. Angling (ed. 2) 101 The Violet fly... Dubbed with dark violet stuff, and a little dun bear's hair mixed with it.
1832 E. Bulwer-Lytton Eugene Aram I. i. ix. 145 The old Corporal..busily employed in fixing to his line..what anglers..call the ‘violet fly’.
violet-green swallow n. a dark-coloured swallow with white patches, Tachycineta thalassina, found in western North America.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Passeriformes (singing) > non-arboreal (larks, etc.) > [noun] > family Hirundinidae > genus Tachycineata
violet-green swallow1858
wood swallow1869
tree swallow1873
1858 S. F. Baird Birds (U.S. War Dept.: Rep. Explor. Route Pacific IX) 311 in U.S. Congress. Serial Set (33rd Congr., 2nd Sess.: House of Representatives Executive Doc. 91) Violet-Green Swallow..Rocky Mountains to Pacific.
1972 L. Hancock Sleeping Bag viii. 205 A pair of violet-green swallows built a nest..above our bedroom window.
violet-tip n. an American butterfly (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > Rhopalocera (butterflies) > [noun] > family Nymphalidae > subfamily Ithomiinae > genus Polygonia > polygonia interrogationis (violet-tip)
violet-tip1881
1881 S. H. Scudder Butterflies 167 The most conspicuous case [of dimorphism] is in the largest, the Violet-Tip (Polygonia interrogationis), where the two forms were once universally considered distinct species.
c. With names of minerals, etc.
ΚΠ
1796 R. Kirwan Elements Mineral. (ed. 2) II. 280 Violet Cobalt ore.
1839 H. T. De la Beche Rep. Geol. Cornwall xv. 497 The violet rock crystal, or amethyst, seems scarce.
1867 Chambers's Encycl. IX. 803/2 Violet Stones,..certain stones found upon high mountains, as in Thuringia,..which, in consequence of being covered with..Violet Moss, emit a smell like that of violets.
1871 Routledge's Every Boy's Ann. June 335 Violet ebony is used for making inlaid chairs.
d.
violet ray n. (a) a ray of violet light; (b) a ray of ultra-violet light. Also attributive. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > light > chromatism > [noun] > spectrum > ultraviolet light
violet ray1803
ultraviolet1887
1803 Jrnl. Nat. Philos. Aug. 255 He placed muriate of silver without the solar spectrum and next to the violet rays. This oxide became blackened in a short time, it became still deeper in the violet rays, still more in the blue, and so on.
1903 Sci. Amer. 20 June 473/1 The so-called ‘violet ray’, which is now so common in literature, should be dropped, and ‘blue ray’ should be substituted in its place.
1925 A. Bennett Jrnl. 7 Feb. (1933) III. 74 He went to lie down under the light of his violet-ray lamp (equivalent of sunlight or some such thing) over his bed.
1929 Proc. IRE 17 1388 The real difficulty lies in the modernization of household equipment such as electric fans..and violet ray machines. All of these must be designed with elimination of radio interference in mind.
1933 Amer. Speech 8 ii. 55/2 Nature-ray, all right, or O.K., as in the phrase, I'm feeling nature-ray. It evidently is based on violet rays.
1966 J. Stevens Cox Illustr. Dict. Hairdressing & Wigmaking 79/2 High frequency, an electric current of high voltage and very low amperage, used in scalp treatment. Also called Violet Ray because of the violet light produced in the glass applicator.
C2. Parasynthetic.
violet-eared adj.
ΚΠ
1782 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds I. ii. 767 Violet-Eared Humming Bird;..beneath the ears, is a very splendid violet spot.
1898 Daily News 12 Feb. 6/3 Violet-eared waxbills, African firefinches, black-crested yellow bulbuls.
violet-headed adj.
ΚΠ
1782 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds I. ii. 718 Violet-Headed Creeper, Certhia violacea.
1815 J. F. Stephens Shaw's Gen. Zool. IX. i. 8 Violet-headed Curucui (Trogon violaceus).
violet-hooded adj.
ΚΠ
1847 Ld. Tennyson Princess ii. 42 With scraps of thundrous Epic lilted out By violet-hooded Doctors.
violet-horned adj.
ΚΠ
1822 S. Clarke Hortus Anglicus II. 10 Violet-horned Poppy.
violet-ringed adj.
ΚΠ
1880 A. H. Swinton Insect Variety 4 A violet-ringed Oak Eggar caterpillar.
violet-shrouded adj.
ΚΠ
1821 P. B. Shelley Epipsychidion 10 Art thou not..A violet-shrouded grave of Woe?
violet-stoled adj.
ΚΠ
a1822 P. B. Shelley Death Adonis 4 Wake violet-stoled queen, and weave the crown Of Death.
violet-striped adj.
ΚΠ
1786 J. Abercrombie Arrangem. Plants 77 in Gardeners Daily Assistant White, violet striped [tulip].
1803 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. IV. ii. 382 Violet~striped Acanthurus. Acanthurus Sohal.
violet-tailed adj.
ΚΠ
1782 J. Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds I. ii. 754 Violet Tailed Humming Bird.
violet-throated adj.
ΚΠ
1811 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. VIII. i. 208 Violet-throated Creeper. Certhia affinis.
C3.
violet shift n. Astronomy displacement of spectral lines towards the violet end of the spectrum; decrease in the wavelength of electromagnetic radiation; usually called a blue shift; cf. redshift n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the universe > radio source > [noun] > blue shift
blueshift1933
violet shift1959
1959 Listener 3 Dec. 971/1 The spectroscope will reveal a violet shift for one component, and a red shift for the other, according to the familiar Doppler principle.
1977 J. Narlikar Struct. Universe iii. 76 Hence negative z is interpreted as ‘blue-shift’ or ‘violet-shift’.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1917; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
violetv.
/ˈvʌɪəlᵻt/, U.S. /ˈvaɪ(ə)lət/ 1. transitive. To tinge with a violet hue.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > purple or purpleness > turning purple > make purple [verb (transitive)]
purple?a1475
corkc1485
impurpure1554
bepurple1582
empurple1590
violet1623
purpurize1632
purpurate1642
1623 tr. A. Favyn Theater of Honour & Knight-hood i. iv. 35 For the Noble Kings of France mourne in Scarlet violetted.
1832 R. Cattermole Beckett 192 The sea, Yet darklier violeted, almost frowned With splendor.
1895 G. Meredith Amazing Marriage I. v. 57 One flank of the white in heaven was violetted wonderfully.
2. intransitive. To gather violets.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > cultivation of plants or crops > picking or gathering > [verb (intransitive)] > gather flowers
violet1813
primrose1830
1813 M. R. Mitford in A. G. L'Estrange Life M. R. Mitford (1870) I. 226 Tomorrow I shall go violeting.
1827 Mrs. Hemans in H. F. Chorley Mem. (1836) I. 151 Having accompanied you again, and again, as I have done, in ‘violetting’ and seeking for wood-sorrel.
1873 Argosy 16 270 How delightful was that day among the Kentish Downs! We began it by violeting in the woods.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1917; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1c1330
n.21688adj.1370
v.1623