brown

• POS: Adjective, Noun, Verb (usu participle)

CIDE DICTIONARY

brown, a. [OE. brun, broun, AS. brn; akin to D. bruin, OHG. brn, Icel. brnn, Sw. brun, Dan. bruun, G. braun, Lith. brunas, Skr. babhru. √93, 253. Cf. Bruin, Beaver, Burnish, Brunette.].

 Of a dark color, of various shades between black and red or yellow.  [1913 Webster]
"Cheeks brown as the oak leaves."  [1913 Webster]

Brown Bess, the old regulation flintlock smoothbore musket, with bronzed barrel, formerly used in the British army. -- Brown bread (a) Dark colored bread; esp. a kind made of unbolted wheat flour, sometimes called in the United States Graham bread. “He would mouth with a beggar though she smelt brown bread and garlic.” Shak. (b) Dark colored bread made of rye meal and Indian meal, or of wheat and rye or Indian; rye and Indian bread. [U.S.] -- Brown coal, wood coal. See Lignite. -- Brown hematite or Brown iron ore (Min.), the hydrous iron oxide, limonite, which has a brown streak. See Limonite. -- Brown holland. See under Holland. -- Brown paper, dark colored paper, esp. coarse wrapping paper, made of unbleached materials. -- Brown spar (Min.), a ferruginous variety of dolomite, in part identical with ankerite. -- Brown stone. See Brownstone. -- Brown stout, a strong kind of porter or malt liquor. -- Brown study, a state of mental abstraction or serious reverie. W. Irving.

brown, n. 

 A dark color inclining to red or yellow, resulting from the mixture of red and black, or of red, black, and yellow; a tawny, dusky hue.  [1913 Webster]

brown, v. t. 

•  To make brown or dusky.  [1913 Webster]

  "A trembling twilight o'er welkin moves,
  Browns the dim void and darkens deep the groves."  [1913 Webster]
•  To make brown by scorching slightly; as, to brown meat or flour.  [1913 Webster]
•  To give a bright brown color to, as to gun barrels, by forming a thin coat of oxide on their surface.  Ure.  [1913 Webster]

brown, v. i. 

 To become brown.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

brown, adj., n., & v.
--adj.
1 having the colour produced by mixing red, yellow, and black, as of dark wood or rich soil.
2 dark-skinned or suntanned.
3 (of bread) made from a dark flour as wholemeal or wheatmeal.
4 (of species or varieties) distinguished by brown coloration.
--n.
1 a brown colour or pigment.
2 brown clothes or material (dressed in brown).
3 (in a game or sport) a brown ball, piece, etc.
4 (prec. by the) Brit. a brown mass of flying game-birds.
--v.tr. & intr. make or become brown by cooking, sunburn, etc.

Idiom

brown ale a dark, mild, bottled beer. brown bear a large N. American brown bear, Ursus arctos. brown coal = LIGNITE. browned off Brit. sl. fed up, disheartened. brown fat a dark-coloured adipose tissue with a rich supply of blood vessels. brown holland see HOLLAND. brown owl
1 any of various owls, esp. the tawny owl.
2 (Brown Owl) an adult leader of a Brownie Guides pack. brown rice unpolished rice with only the husk of the grain removed. Brown-shirt a Nazi; a member of a fascist organization. brown sugar unrefined or partially refined sugar. in a brown study see STUDY.

Derivative

brownish adj. brownness n. browny adj.

Etymology

OE brun f. Gmc

THESAURUS

brown

Argos brown, Bordeaux, Cologne brown, Mexican red, Roman umber, Saint Benoit, Turkey umber, acorn, alesan, alizarin brown, anthracene brown, anthragallol, antique brown, antique gold, autumn leaf, bake, barbecue, baste, becloud, bedarken, bedim, begloom, beige, biscuit, bister, black, black out, blacken, blanch, block the light, blot out, boil, bone brown, bracken, braise, brew, broil, bronze, brown race, browning, brownish, brownish-yellow, brownness, brunet, bunny brown, burn, burnt almond, cafe noir, cast a shadow, chocolate, cinnamon, cloud, cloud over, cocoa, cocoa-brown, coconut, coddle, coffee, coffee-brown, cook, curry, darken, darken over, dead leaf, devil, dim, dim out, do, do to perfection, doeskin, drab, dun, dun-brown, dun-drab, eclipse, ecru, embrown, encloud, encompass with shadow, fawn, fawn-colored, fire, foliage brown, fox, fricassee, frizz, frizzle, fry, fuscous, gloom, grege, griddle, grill, hazel, heat, infuscate, infuscation, khaki, leather, lurid, maple sugar, mummy, murk, negro, nut-brown, obfuscate, obnubilate, obscure, obumbrate, occult, occultate, olive brown, olive-brown, olive-drab, oriole, otter brown, oven-bake, overcast, overcloud, overshadow, pan, pan-broil, parboil, partridge, philamot, poach, prepare, prepare food, raw sienna, raw umber, resorcin dark brown, roast, rust, saute, scallop, seal, seal-brown, sear, sepia, shade, shadow, shirr, simmer, snuff-colored, somber, sorrel, steam, stew, stir-fry, sunburn, suntan, tan, taupe, tawny, tenne, terra sienna, terra umbra, toast, toast-brown, topaz, umber, umber-colored, walnut, walnut-brown, yellowish-brown

ROGET THESAURUS

brown

Brown

N brown, bister ocher, sepia, Vandyke brown, brown, bay, dapple, auburn, castaneous, chestnut, nut-brown, cinnamon, russet, tawny, fuscous, chocolate, maroon, foxy, tan, brunette, whitey brown, fawn-colored, snuff-colored, liver-colored, brown as a berry, brown as mahogany, brown as the oak leaves, khaki, sun-burnt, tanned, brown, bister ocher, sepia, Vandyke brown, brown, bay, dapple, auburn, castaneous, chestnut, nut-brown, cinnamon, russet, tawny, fuscous, chocolate, maroon, foxy, tan, brunette, whitey brown, fawn-colored, snuff-colored, liver-colored, brown as a berry, brown as mahogany, brown as the oak leaves, khaki, sun-burnt, tanned.