sienna

noun

si·​en·​na sē-ˈe-nə How to pronounce sienna (audio)
plural siennas
1
: an earthy substance containing oxides of iron and usually of manganese that is brownish yellow when raw and orange red or reddish brown when burnt and is used as a pigment
2
or less commonly siena, plural sienas : a strong reddish-brown

Examples of sienna 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.
Here, several of the walls are a rich sienna, their hue echoed by many similar purplish browns throughout the bedroom, whether in the velvet curtains, the fuzzily abstract framed textiles by the Moroccan studio Lrnce or the heavily veined marble double sink in the adjacent en suite bathroom. — Kurt Soller Clément Vayssieres, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2023 Womanly figures in flowy sienna and white robes stand in a vast ornate chamber with a vaguely alien cityscape in the background. — WIRED, 20 Jan. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Italian terra di Siena, literally, Siena earth, from Siena, Italy

First Known Use

1787, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of sienna was in 1787

Rhymes for sienna

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Browse Nearby Words

Sienkiewicz
sienna
sienna brown
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Cite this Entry

“Sienna.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sienna. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.

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Kids Definition

sienna

noun
si·​en·​na sē-ˈen-ə How to pronounce sienna (audio)
: an artist's pigment that is either brownish yellow or reddish brown
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