Make Your Point: TINGE

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pronounce TINGE:

TINJ

Hear it.

connect this word to others:

As we check out the beautiful little word tinge, let's recall some similar words:

1. A shade of a certain color, or a little trace of any quality, is a ti___ure.

2. Directly from a French word meaning "shade of color," a n___ce is a fine shade of difference, or a subtle variation.

3. To im___ your children with morals, or your friends with hope, or your possessions with sentimental value, is to fill them up, as if moistening them or pouring things into them.

(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)

definition:

"Tinge" comes from the Latin tingere, meaning "to color, or to dye."

In the most straightforward sense, to tinge something is to color it a little bit: "She has blonde hair tinged with red."

More figuratively, to tinge something with some quality is to change it a little bit by adding that quality. "It's a happy song, but it's tinged with sadness."

Like many verbs do, this one also became a noun. A tinge of something, like a tinge of red or a tinge of sadness, is a little bit of it, or a little trace of it.

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Often a verb, the transitive kind: "a voice tinged with awe;" "words tinged with impatience;" "doubt tinged with hope (David Levithan)."

Also a noun, the countable kind: "Her large eyes have a tinge of sadness;" "The story has a tinge of scandal;" "The air carries the salty tinge of the ocean (Erin Morgenstern)."

Other forms:

Tinges, tinged, tinging (or, if you prefer, tingeing); untinged.

how to use it:

Pick the short, common word "tinge" when you want to express your idea with a tone that's formal, graceful, and artistic. It suggests the addition of a slight, subtle bit of color or feeling.

Say that one thing tinges another thing, often with some color, taste, scent, mood, or emotion: "Dawn tinges the horizon with pink light." "He tinges the poem with regret."

Or, say that something is tinged with something else: "The horizon is tinged with pink light." "The poem is tinged with regret."

Or, use the noun, and talk about a tinge of something: "On the horizon is a tinge of pink light." "There's a tinge of regret in the poem."

examples:

"The edge of his sword was tinged with red."
— Rick Riordan, Sea of Monsters, 2006

"There was a tinge of pride in Bero's voice, an upward lilt."
— Megan E. O'Keefe, Velocity Weapon, 2019

has this page helped you understand "tinge"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "tinge" without saying "tint" or "color."

try it out:

Fill in the blanks: "(Someone) said (something) with a tinge of (some emotion, like doubt, anger, wonder, amusement, bitterness, excitement, irritation, desperation, hysteria, or Schadenfreude)."

Example 1: "'Finally,' Elodin said with a tinge of exasperation."
— Patrick Rothfuss, The Name of the Wind, 2007

Example 2: "I laughed at this dire headline: 'How to Actually Eliminate Split Ends—Once and For All.' When I showed it to my husband, I said, 'You could always shave your head!' He replied cheerfully, with tinge of darkness: 'You could always die!'"

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game this month is "The Words are Hard, the Titles are Silly, and the Points Don't Matter!"

In each issue, try matching a given term to a silly title. For example, match the term “desultory” to the video game title “If It Moves, Shoot It!” because desultory methods are random, disorganized, and unmethodical.

If you need a definition for a term, give it a click. Scroll all the way down to see my suggested matches. Give yourself a point for each match you make that matches my match! And give yourself two points for any match that mismatches mine, as long as you can make up some reason for your match, no matter how half-baked.

Try these today:

Terms:
A. rankled
B. scruples
C. vaunt

Titles of books:
1. Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal
2. Go the **** to Sleep
3. I Am America (And So Can You!)

review this word:

1. Near-opposites of TINGE include

A. WANE and DWINDLE.
B. DRAIN and REMOVE.
C. STAIN and MOTTLE.

2. According to users on the Food Safety subreddit, undercooked chicken might be pink all over; it's safe to eat if it has ___ in one spot, likely from a vein.

A. just pink tinge
B. just a pink tinge
C. just a tinge pink

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words.

From my blog:
On vocabulary...
  36 ways to study words.
  Why we forget words, & how to remember them.
  How to use sophisticated words without being awkward.
On writing...
How to improve any sentence.
How to motivate our kids to write.
How to stop procrastinating and start writing.
How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count.

From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.

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