red ocher

noun

: a red earthy hematite used as a pigment

Examples of red ocher in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Behind his left shoulder was a charm made up of 29 iridescent sunrise tellin shells, a lump of red ocher and a fish bone tool used to scratch designs into human skin. Sean Kingsley, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Jan. 2024 But Taylor makes Hammons even more remarkable, taking Hammons back to his symbolic roots — in front of the red ocher facade of the Great Mosque at Djenné in Mali — with a grinning hyena nearby. Roberta Smith, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2023 The barge skippers are highly competitive, in their own way, but their race is now largely about the preservation of British tradition, recalling a time when thousands of these craft plied the River Thames, transporting cargo — coal, barley, rubbish — under red ocher sails. William Booth, Washington Post, 24 July 2023 Press the person’s skin (or sea lion skin, in a pinch) back on, and paint it with black manganese or, in later eras, red ocher. Maggie Shipstead Anthony Cotsifas, New York Times, 10 May 2023 See all Example Sentences for red ocher 

Word History

First Known Use

1572, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of red ocher was in 1572

Dictionary Entries Near red ocher

Cite this Entry

“Red ocher.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/red%20ocher. Accessed 25 Nov. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!