Colourimetry

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The scientific measurement and quantitative analysis of color, including how colors are perceived and specified numerically
2. The technique of measuring color and describing it through numerical values for use in science, industry or design
3. The science of quantifying color so that hues can be compared, specified and reproduced accurately

Etymology: Colourimetry is a plain technical compound: the English noun "colour" joined to "-metry", the suffix meaning "measurement". That suffix traces back to the ancient Greek "métron", meaning "measure", which gave Greek words such as "-metría" for the art or practice of measuring. The Greek form passed into Latin as "-metria", then through Old French "-métrie" into English as "-metry", a suffix that has produced many English terms for measuring processes. The compound is simply the suffix attached to "colour". Its meaning is literal: the measurement of colour, in particular the quantitative assessment of how a colour is perceived or specified, typically by instruments or by numerical values that describe hue, lightness and saturation. Because the parts are transparent, the word needs no special story; its value lies in showing how a single Greek measuring element can be attached to almost any English noun to name a new field of study.

Synonyms: colorimetry