Blond

Part of speech: adjective, noun

Pronunciation: /blɒnd/

Definitions

1. Having pale yellow or golden hair color, or describing hair of this light shade
2. Having hair that is light in color, often appearing yellowish or golden, while also indicating a specific hue associated with such hair types
3. Characterized by a light yellow or golden hue in hair color, often associated with a specific appearance or cultural stereotype

Etymology: Blond is one of those words that started out describing a color that was not quite a color at all. Its ancestor in Frankish, "blund," meant a mixed shade somewhere between golden and light brown, and the Proto-Germanic root behind it, "blundaz," meant "mixed" or even "blinding." The same ancient root gave Old English "blandan," "to mix," which is the same family as the modern word "blend." So the hair color was originally a kind of blend. The word reached English through Middle French, which had taken it from Old French "blond," "blont," or "blund," and it appears in Medieval Latin as "blondus." Its sense of fair hair was present from the start, and English adopted it as both an adjective and a noun. Old English had its own relative, "blondenfeax," meaning "grey-haired," a reminder that the word's color range once overlapped with shades we would now call grey or silver.

Synonyms: fair-haired, light-haired, golden, yellow, pale

Antonyms: brunette, dark, black, auburn, red