Azure

//ˈæʒɚ// adj, name, noun, verb

adj, name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The clear blue colour of the sky; also, a pigment or dye of this colour. countable, uncountable

    "In robes of azure."

  2. 2
    a light shade of blue wordnet
  3. 3
    A blue colour on a coat of arms, represented in engraving by horizontal parallel lines. countable, uncountable

    "Berington of Chester (on the authority of Harleian manuscript No. 1535) is said to bear a plain shield of azure. Personally I doubt this coat of arms […]"

  4. 4
    The unclouded sky; the blue vault above. countable, poetic, uncountable

    "Not like those steps / On heaven's azure."

  5. 5
    Any of various widely distributed lycaenid butterflies of the genus Celastrina. countable, uncountable
Show 2 more definitions
  1. 6
    Any of various Australasian lycaenid butterflies of the genus Ogyris. countable, uncountable
  2. 7
    Lapis lazuli. countable, uncountable
Verb
  1. 1
    To colour blue. transitive

    "Our readers are aware that much of the sugar sold in many countries goes through an azuring treatment; blue is added to granulated sugar with the view of making it appear whiter than it actually is."

  2. 2
    color azure wordnet
Adjective
  1. 1
    Sky blue; resembling the clear blue colour of the unclouded sky. not-comparable

    "When Britain first, at Heaven's command / Arose from out the azure main."

  2. 2
    Cloudless. not-comparable
  3. 3
    In blazon, of the colour blue. not-comparable

    "‘I forget your coat of arms.’ ‘A human foot d’or, in a field azure; the foot crushes a serpent rampant whose fangs are imbedded in the heel.’"

Adjective
  1. 1
    of a deep somewhat purplish blue color similar to that of a clear October sky wordnet
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname.

Example

More examples

"She had azure hair and a face white as wax. Her eyes were closed and her hands crossed on her breast."

Etymology

From Middle English asure, from Old French azur, derived from Arabic لَازَوَرْد (lāzaward, “lapis lazuli”), dropping the l as if it were equivalent to the French article l'. The Arabic is from Classical Persian لاجورد (lājward, “lapis lazuli”), from the region of Lajward in Badakhshan. Compare with Italian azzurro and Spanish azul.

Related phrases

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.