Discolorers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Agents or substances that cause a surface or material to lose or change its natural color
2. Things, such as chemicals or strong sunlight, that make objects fade, stain, or otherwise alter their original hue
3. Substances or factors that stain, fade, or change the color of fabrics, paint, or other materials

Etymology: "Discolorers" is the plural of "discolorer," a noun meaning a substance that stains or changes the colour of something. The word is built from "discolor," a verb formed from "dis-," a prefix meaning "apart" or "away," and "color," meaning hue or tint, combined with the agent suffix "-er," which marks a thing or person that performs the action. A discolorer, then, is literally something that takes colour away from, or alters the colour of, whatever it touches.