reddish

Everyday

Reddish means a little red, or nearly red, but not completely («reddish-brown hair»). tree →

In the lessons

In science and art lessons about colour, «-ish» words describe colours that are not pure: reddish, greenish, bluish. In science, Mars is called the Red Planet for its reddish soil. In stories, a reddish sky at sunset or a reddish glow sets the scene.

Examples

• Mars looks reddish in the night sky. tree →
• The leaves turned reddish in autumn. tree →
• She has reddish-brown hair. tree →
• The sky was reddish at sunset. tree →
• Rust is a reddish-brown colour. tree →
• His face went reddish when he was embarrassed. tree →
• The rock had a reddish stripe. tree →
• Under the breast-fin of the whale is a reddish-brown spot. tree →

Note

Double d: red → reddish. «-ish» means «a bit»: reddish = a bit red; it also makes «sevenish» (about seven o'clock). Often joined with another colour: reddish-brown.

In Jewish tradition

In the laws of Leviticus a reddish-white spot on the skin is a sign the priest must check for tzaraat.

Interpretation. Tradition says the priest, not a doctor, decides whether the person is unclean; the skin condition is read as a sign tied to wrongdoing such as gossip, and is not just a disease.

Examples

• and in the place of the boil there is a white rising, or a bright spot, reddish-white, then it shall be shown to the priest. (Torah LEV.13.19, JPS 1917) tree →
• Or when the flesh hath in the skin thereof a burning by fire, and the quick flesh of the burning become a bright spot, reddish-white, or white; (Torah LEV.13.24, JPS 1917) tree →
• But if there be in the bald head, or the bald forehead, a reddish-white plague, it is leprosy breaking out in his bald head, or his bald forehead. (Torah LEV.13.42, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

Double d: red → reddish. «-ish» means «a bit»: reddish = a bit red; it also makes «sevenish» (about seven o'clock). Often joined with another colour: reddish-brown.