Tints

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /tɪnts/

Definitions

1. Variations in color can be produced by mixing a base hue with white or black
2. subtle differences in tonal values arise through the addition of specific pigments
3. Colors achieved by mixing white into the original pigment to create lighter shades ; Colors formed by blending black with the base hue to produce deeper tones

Etymology: "Tints" is simply the plural of "tint", so the story belongs to the singular. "Tint" began as "tinct", a word borrowed from Latin "tinctus", meaning "dyed", the past participle of "tingere", "to tinge". Over time the form was altered and reshaped under the influence of French "teinte", also meaning a shade of colour, and the spelling settled into the shorter form we use now. The same Latin root gave English a doublet, "tent", the name of a kind of deep red wine. Both words descend from the idea of dyeing or staining, and they split apart into a pigment word and a wine word, a reminder that a single Latin verb for colouring could send different meanings down different English channels.

Synonyms: shades, hues, colors

Antonyms: blanch, fade