What does orange mean?
Orange is both the common name of a familiar citrus fruit and the name of a vivid color between yellow and red. The fruit is round, usually sweet-tasting, and enclosed in a fragrant peel; it may be eaten fresh or used to make drinks, preserves, sauces, and desserts. The color takes its name from the ripe fruit, whose skin is commonly associated with the hue. As an adjective, orange describes objects of that color, while as a verb it means to give something an orange color. The word also appears in fixed expressions such as orange juice, orange peel, and orange blossom. Its history reflects the movement of the fruit and its name across languages: the English word ultimately derives through Spanish and Italian from Arabic, which borrowed it from Persian.
The round, usually sweet citrus fruit of the evergreen tree Citrus sinensis, with a fragrant peel and juicy segments.
"He ate an orange for breakfast."
Usually countable; the plural oranges is standard.
Having the bright color between yellow and red, especially like the peel of a ripe orange.
"She wore an orange jacket."
The color sense is common in general English; the adjective may describe clothing, lights, paint, and natural objects.
To color something orange or to become orange, especially through exposure to heat, light, or age.
"The leaves are beginning to orange in the autumn sun."
Less common than the noun and adjective; it is especially used in descriptions of natural objects changing color.
The standard plural refers to multiple pieces of the fruit. In the color sense, the word is generally used as an adjective or as an uncountable color name.
"She bought a bag of oranges and painted the door orange."
The color orange was named after the fruit, and the fruit itself reached English through a trail of Arabic, Spanish, and Italian.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does orange come from?
The English word orange entered through Spanish naranja and earlier forms such as naranj, ultimately from Arabic nāranj, which was borrowed from Persian nārang. The fruit was known in Mediterranean and Asian trade long before it became established in English. The color sense developed later by association with the fruit's characteristic peel.
Related word forms
How orange is actually used
As a color, orange can range from a warm yellow-orange to a reddish or brownish orange. The fruit is usually countable when referring to individual pieces of fruit, while orange as a color is generally uncountable in the phrase 'orange' but can be used attributively, as in 'orange traffic cones.'
Easily confused with orange
An orange is the fruit of the sweet orange tree, while a tangerine is a smaller, usually easier-peel citrus fruit with a somewhat different flavor and texture.