dye

Everyday

1. A dye is a substance used to change the colour of cloth, hair, food or other things. tree →
2. To dye something means to change its colour by soaking it in, or covering it with, a dye. tree →
3. (science) Dyes can be made from plants, insects or chemicals. tree →

In the lessons

In science lessons dye is used in experiments: food dye in water shows how water moves up a celery stalk, and chromatography separates the colours in an ink or dye. In history lessons pupils learn that purple dye was once so rare and costly that only kings and emperors wore it, and that people made dyes from plants such as woad and onion skins. In everyday life people dye their hair, dye Easter eggs and tie-dye T-shirts.

Examples

• We used blue food dye to show water climbing up the celery. tree →
• Mum dyed her hair red. tree →
• We tie-dyed T-shirts at summer camp. tree →
• Onion skins make a yellow-brown dye. tree →
• The dye ran in the wash and turned my socks pink. tree →
• Long ago, purple dye was worn only by rulers. tree →
• We dyed eggs bright colours for Easter. tree →
• But as for his elder brothers they did nothing but exercise their horses, and curl their hair, and dye their mustaches. tree →

Note

Past «dyed», «-ing» form «dyeing» (keep the «e»). Homophone trap: «dye» (colour) and «die» (stop living); «dyeing» (colouring) and «dying» (about to die) — spell carefully. A dye soaks in; a paint sits on top.