tinge

1 of 2

noun

ˈtinj 

1

: a slight staining or suffusing shade or color

2

: an affective or modifying property or influence : touch

a tinge of guilt

tinge

2 of 2

verb

tinged; tingeing or tinging ˈtin-jiŋ 

transitive verb

1

a

: to color with a slight shade or stain : tint

b

: to affect or modify with a slight odor or taste

2

: to affect or modify in character

Synonyms

Noun

• cast
• color
• hue
• shade
• tincture
• tint
• tone

Verb

• bepaint [archaic]
• color
• dye
• paint
• pigment
• stain
• tincture
• tint

Examples of tinge in a Sentence

Noun

showing a tinge of color

dark hair with reddish tinges

Verb

The ink tinged his fingers blue.

just slightly tinge the frosting with yellow food coloring to give it a lemony look

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The experience, filled with excitement and a tinge of fear, has left viewers across social media captivated by the lions' close approach. —Nina Turner, Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2024

There’s a beat-boxer (Mark Martin) holding down the rhythm, along with an electric guitar and bass (Siena D’Addario and Melissa Mahoney) bringing a tinge of alt-metal. —Sara Holdren, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2024

Verb

The Vikings came up short against the Detroit Lions, and their first loss of the season is tinged with a fair amount of regret. —Steve Silverman, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024

As the threat of political violence tinges so much of this election season, that nothing-to-see-here posture is understandable. —Philip Elliott, TIME, 17 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Latin tingere to dip, moisten, tinge; akin to Greek tengein to moisten and probably to Old High German dunkōn to dip

First Known Use

Noun

1752, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

tinge

1 of 2 verb

ˈtinj 

tinged; tingeing or tinging ˈtin-jiŋ 

: to color or flavor slightly

tinge

2 of 2 noun

: a slight coloring, flavor, or quality

a reddish tinge

a tinge of mystery