Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

purple

/ˈpɜː.pl̩/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.32 in modern English

Syllables
pur-ple
IPA
/ˈpɜː.pl̩/
10
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A colour between red and blue; violet, though often closer to magenta.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Any non-spectral colour on the line of purples on a colour chromaticity diagram or a colour wheel between violet and red.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Cloth, or a garment, dyed a purple colour; especially, a purple robe, worn as an emblem of rank or authority; specifically, the purple robe or mantle worn by Ancient Roman emperors as the emblem of imperial dignity.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Imperial power.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Any of various species of mollusks from which Tyrian purple dye was obtained, especially the common dog whelk.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

The purple haze cultivar of cannabis in the kush family, either pure or mixed with others, or by extension any variety of smoked marijuana.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Purpura.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Earcockle, a disease of wheat.

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English purple, purpel, from Old English purpul (“purple”, adjective), taken from Old English purpure (“purple colour”, noun), from Latin purpura (“purple dye, shellfish”), from Ancient Greek πορφύρα (porphúra, “purple-fish”), perhaps of Semitic origin. Doublet of purpura and purpure. The sense of "imperial power" is from the wearing of the color purple by emperors and kings.

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈpɜː.pl̩/
  • British English: /ˈpɜː.pl̩/

Usage

Inflected Forms

purples (plural) purpler (comparative) more purple (comparative) purplest (superlative) most purple (superlative) purples (present, singular) purpling (participle, present) purpled (participle, past) purpled (past)

Derived Forms

bepurple blurple empurple impurple purpleheart purpleleaf purplely Purpleman purpleness purplescent purplesome purplespotted

Phrases

American purple gallinule aniline purple bee purple born in the purple born to the purple bromcresol purple bromocresol purple Chinese purple

Frequently Paired Words

porphyrogenite porphyrogeniture purpure rhodopsin secondary color

Synonyms

blue-red snakebite and black purpureal flowery overwrought violet purplish imperial majestic regal royal

Antonyms

nonpurple

Rhymes With

purple nurple hirple curple bepurple hurple unpurple blurple

Questions

How do you pronounce purple?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈpɜː.pl̩/.
What does purple mean?
A colour between red and blue; violet, though often closer to magenta.
Where does purple come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce purple

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “purple”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈpɜː.pl̩/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “purple”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “purple” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.