Word.ws English Dictionary

pink

/ˈpiŋk//ˈpɪŋk/

pink noun: a color reminiscent of pinks, the flowers. Also the alternative form of pinko.

pink: a color reminiscent of pinks, the flowers
Image: Badseed, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun (1)

pink (countable and uncountable, plural pinks)

  1. A color reminiscent of pinks, the flowers.
    • My new dress is a wonderful shade of pink.
    • Jasper couldn't have known they'd been overheard upstairs, but his little smirk coming and going invited you to guess he'd been up to something. He had the pink of sex about him still.2004, Alan Hollinghurst, The Line of Beauty […], 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN, page 228
    1. Magenta, the colour evoked by red and blue light when combined.
    2. Pale red.
  2. Any of various flowers of that colour in the genus Dianthus, sometimes called carnations.
    • This garden in particular has a beautiful bed of pinks.
  3. (dated) A perfect example; excellence, perfection; the embodiment of some quality.
    • Your hat, madam, is the very pink of fashion.
    • Nay, I am the very pink of courtesy.c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and...
  4. Hunting pink; scarlet, as worn by hunters.
    • I had taken it for granted that there would be people ‘in pink’, but these enormous confident strangers overwhelmed me with the visible authenticity of their brick-red coats.1928, Siegfried Sassoon, Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man, Penguin, published 2013, page 23
    • it is interesting to note the curious legend that the pink of the hunting field is not due to any optical advantage but to an entirely different reason.1986, Michael J. O'Shea, James Joyce and Heraldry, SUNY, page 69
  5. A huntsman.
    • The pinks stand about the inn-door lighting cigars and waiting to see us start, while their hacks are led up and down the market-place, on which the inn looks.1857, Thomas Hughes, Tom Brown's School Days
  6. One of the colour balls used in snooker, coloured pink, with a value of 6 points.
    • Oh dear, he's left himself snookered behind the pink.
  7. (slang) An unlettered and uncultured, but relatively prosperous, member of the middle classes; compare Babbitt, bourgeoisie.
  8. (slang) The vagina or vulva.
    • Then Eddie did what he calls, 'Two in the pink, one in the stink.' “I held up my right forefinger and middle finger and said, “Two.” Then I held up my ring finger and said “One. Two in the pussy, one in the ass.”2020 March 23, Mike Hatch, The Dumb Class: Boomer Junior High, Mike Hatch H&A Publishing, →ISBN, page 78
  9. A pink dye or pigment.
  10. A pen, pencil, crayon, etc., made of pink pigment.
  11. Something, or a part of a thing, which is pink.

Adjective (1)

pink (comparative pinker, superlative pinkest)

  1. Having a colour between red and white; pale red.
  2. Of a fox-hunter's jacket: scarlet.
  3. Having conjunctivitis.
  4. By comparison to red (communist), supportive of socialist ideas but not actually socialist or communist.
    • The word "socialist" has so many connotations that it can cover almost anything from pink liberalism to red-red communism.1976, Bhalchandra Pundlik Adarkar, The Future of the Constitution: A Critical Analysis
  5. (informal) Relating to women or girls.
    • pink-collar
    • pink job
  6. (informal) Relating to homosexuals as a group within society.
    • the pink economy
    • pink pound

Verb (1)

pink (third-person singular simple present pinks, present participle pinking, simple past and past participle pinked)

  1. (intransitive) To become pink in color, to redden.
    • The woman’s pale skin pinked as she shook her head. “No. It’s out of my budget. Come on, Sammy”2014, Teresa Carpenter, Her Boss by Arrangement, page 136
  2. (transitive) To turn (something) pink.
    • They are all nearly nude, pinked and bronzed by the sun.1961, Tennessee Williams, The Night of the Iguana, New Directions Publishing, published 2009, act II, page 46
    • The rabbits, still lining the roadside, but now pinked by dawn, craned their necks to follow her departure.1985, Carl Sagan, chapter 3, in Contact, Simon & Schuster, published 1997, page 57
  3. (transitive) To turn (a topaz or other gemstone) pink by the application of heat.
    • Because heating is relatively easy to perform once one is trained to do it, it can be assumed that any pink topaz from Brazil, the gem’s main modern producer, is colored more by man than nature.[…] Relatively few stones from Brazil have this trace element in enough quantity for what dealers call...2012, David Federman, Modern Jeweler’s Consumer Guide to Colored Gemstones, page 227

Noun (2)

pink (plural pinks)

  1. (regional) A common minnow (Phoxinus phoxinus0.
  2. (regional) A young Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, before it becomes a smolt; a parr.

Noun (3)

pink (plural pinks)

  1. (obsolete) A narrow boat.

Verb (2)

pink (third-person singular simple present pinks, present participle pinking, simple past and past participle pinked)

  1. To decorate a piece of clothing or fabric by adding holes or by scalloping the fringe.
  2. To prick with a sword.
    • ‘Pugh!’ says she, ‘you have pinked a man in a duel, that's all.’1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC
    • Within three seconds D'Artagnan pinked him thrice, dedicating each thrust as he dealt it. “One for Athos!" he cried. “One for Porthos!" and at the last, “one for Aramis!”1999 [1844], Jacques Le Clercq, The Three Musketeers, translation of original by Alexandre Dumas, page 187
  3. To wound by irony, criticism, or ridicule.
    • “Young man, if you have no authority, let me speak to someone who has! Put me through to Mr. Berquist.” The stooge suddenly lost his smile and Jubal thought gleefully that he had at last pinked him.1961, Robert A. Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land, New York: Avon, →OCLC, page 127
    Synonyms:
    draw blood

Noun (4)

pink (plural pinks)

  1. (obsolete) A small hole or puncture made by a sharp, slender instrument such as a rapier, poniard or dagger, or (by extension) a bullet; a stab.
    • At a great word she will her poynard draw, Looke for the pincke if once thou giue the lye.1601, Weever, Mirr. Mart., C j
    • A freebooter’s pink, sir, three or four inches deep.1607, Thomas Middleton, Your Five Gallants, iii 5
  2. (obsolete) A small hole or eyelet punched in a garment for decoration, as with a pinking iron; a scallop.
    • Item,..for iiil* powdringis and pinkis to the sam goune, .xij s1512, Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot, IV 215
    • small pinks, cuts or iagges in clothes1598, Florio, Tagliuzzi

Verb (3)

pink (third-person singular simple present pinks, present participle pinking, simple past and past participle pinked)

  1. Of a motor car, to emit a high "pinking" noise, usually as a result of ill-set ignition timing for the fuel used (in a spark ignition engine).
  2. Of a musical instrument, to sound a very high-pitched, short note.
    • And then the record changed, a piano pinking high a Poulenc-like theme.1959, Anthony Burgess, Beds in the East (The Malayan Trilogy), published 1972, page 590

Verb (4)

pink (third-person singular simple present pinks, present participle pinking, simple past and past participle pinked)

  1. (obsolete) To wink; to blink.
    • A Hungry Fox that had got a Cock in his Eye, and could not tell how to come at him ; cast himself at his Length upon the Ground, and there he lay winking and pinking as if he had Sore Eyes.1692, Roger L'Estrange, “A Fox and a Cock”, in Fables of Aesop and Other Eminent Mythologists, page 409

Adjective (2)

pink (not comparable)

  1. (obsolete) Half-shut; winking.
    • Come, thou monarch of the vine,
      Plumpy Bacchus with pink eyne!
      In thy vats our cares be drowned,
      With thy grapes our hairs be crowned.c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard...

Noun (5)

pink (uncountable)

  1. (historical) Any of various lake pigments or dyes in yellow, yellowish green or brown shades, made with plant coloring and a metallic oxide base.
    • To make Dutch pink, boil the stems of woad in a solution of alum, and then mix the liquor with clay, marl, or chalk, which will become mixed with the colour of the decoction1816, Pierre François Tingry, The Painter and Varnisher's Guide, page 245
    • Carlyle (2001) lists from her study of nineteenth century British documentary sources yellow carmine, Dutch pink, English pink and yellow lake in descending order of intensity.2008, Nicholas Eastaugh, Valentine Walsh, Tracey Chaplin, Pigment Compendium, page 156

Proper noun capitalized: Pink

Pink

  1. A surname.

Noun (6) capitalized: Pink

Pink (plural Pinks)

  1. (dated, derogatory, slang) An operative of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency.

Also used as

pink is also the alternative form of pinko.

pink meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

pink in Hindi

pale red colour
गुलाबी gulābī
colored/coloured between red and white
गुलाबी gulābī

pink in Tamil

pale red colour
இளஞ்சிவப்பு iḷañcivappu

pink in Marathi

गुलाबी, गुलाबी रंगाची, गुलाबी रंगाचा

pink in Urdu

pale red colour
گلابی gulâbî
colored/coloured between red and white
گلابی gulābī
More languagesFewer languages
pink in Bengali
পরাকাষ্ঠা porakaśṭha, গোলাপী gōlapi
pink in Telugu
చంద్రకావి candrakāvi
pink in Malayalam
പിങ്ക് piṅkŭ
pink in Kannada
ಗುಲಾಬಿ gulābi
pink in Punjabi
ਗੁਲਾਬੀ
pink in Gujarati
ગુલાબી
pink in Odia
ଗୋଲାପୀ
pink in Sanskrit
कमल kamala
pink in Sinhala
රෝස rōsa
pink in Nepali
गुलाबी gulābī
pink in Pashto
ګلابي gwëlâbi
pink in Tagalog
kalimbahin, kulay-rosas, rosas
pink in Arabic
قَرَنْفُل qaranful, وَرْدِيّ wardiyy, زَهْرِيّ zahriyy, بَمْبِيّ bambiyy
pink in Malay
merah muda, merah jambu
pink in Indonesian
merah muda, merah jambu, pink muda
pink in Persian
رنگ صورتی rang-e surati, صورتی surati
pink in Thai
สีชมพู sǐi chomphuu, ชมพู chom-puu
pink in Vietnamese
hồng, màu hồng
pink in Myanmar
ပန်းရောင် pan:raung

Examples of pink in a sentence

  • Both halves feature lyrics that are so teen-girly they sound like they were written in pink ink in a padlocked diary with hearts and frowny faces for punctuation.2016 March 24, Darryl Sterdan, “ZAYN’s ‘Mind of Mine’ and Gwen Stefani’s ‘This is What the Truth Feels Like’ top this week’s new music”, in...
  • He is spotted with marks of stabs and revolver 'pinks', and he takes all his wounds quite as matter of course.1885 May 13, Pall Mall G., 4/I:
  • Is this pinke of equall proportion to this cut?1599, Ben Jonson, Cynthia's Rev., volume iv:
  • You had rather have / An ulcer in your body than a pink / More in your clothes.c. 1632–1641, Ben Jonson, Magnetick Lady, iii. 4

All 40 example sentences with pink

Synonyms of pink

20 more synonymsFewer synonyms

All synonyms of pink

Forms of pink

Noun
pluralpinks
pluralPinks
Adjective
comparativepinker
superlativepinkest
Verb
third-person singular presentpinks
present participlepinking
past participlepinked
pastpinked

Plural of pink: pinks

Origin of pink

Origin uncertain; perhaps from Dutch pinken (“to blink”) or the English verb pink from the same source. Perhaps from the notion of the petals being pinked. An earlier word for similar flesh-like colors, mostly displaced by pink, was incarnation ([1300s]; see Etymonline) and carnation.

Unknown. Some lexicographers suggest comparison to regional German Pinke (“minnow; small salmon”), but this is not widely accepted.

Borrowed from Middle Dutch pincke. Compare French pinque.

Words formed from pink

Phrases with pink

125 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with pink

35 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about pink

What does pink mean?
Pink means a color reminiscent of pinks, the flowers.
What is pink in Hindi?
Pink in Hindi is गुलाबी (gulābī). See Pink meaning in Hindi.
How do you use pink in a sentence?
Both halves feature lyrics that are so teen-girly they sound like they were written in pink ink in a padlocked diary with hearts and frowny faces for punctuation.
What part of speech is pink?
Pink can be a noun, an adjective, a verb or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce pink?
Pink is pronounced /ˈpɪŋk/ (UK).
What is the plural of pink?
The plural of pink is pinks.

Words near pink in the dictionary

  1. pinjra
  2. pinjrapole
  3. pinjrapoles
  4. pinjras
  5. pinjur
  6. pink
  7. pink 'un
  8. pink 'uns
  9. pink and grey cockatoo
  10. pink and grey cockatoos
  11. pink banana

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: pink (page history and authors); Pink (page history and authors); pink (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); pink (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); pink (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); pink (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-uk-pink.ogg, En-au-Pink.ogg.

Cite this entry: “pink.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/pink. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.