Phrase guide

food colouring

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Any substance added to food in order to change its colour.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • Add a few drops of blue food colouring to the icing.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

a digestible substance used to give color to food

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • food color made from vegetable dyes

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: coloring, colouring, food coloring, food color, food colour

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: foodstuff, food product

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

14 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 食用色素 (shíyòng sèsù) — substance
  • Danish: farvestof — substance
  • Danish: kulør — substance
  • Estonian: toiduvärv — substance
  • Finnish: elintarvikeväri — substance
  • German: Lebensmittelfarbstoff — substance
  • Greek: χρωστική τροφίμων (chrostikí trofímon) — substance
  • Korean: 착색제 (chaksaekje) — substance
  • Korean: 식용색소 (sigyongsaekso) — substance
  • Polish: barwnik spożywczy — substance
  • Portuguese: corante alimentar — substance
  • Portuguese: corante alimentício — substance
  • Russian: пищево́й краси́тель (piščevój krasítelʹ) — substance
  • Thai: สีผสมอาหาร (sǐi-pà-sǒm-aa-hǎan) — substance