Noun: greige
| Singular | greige |
| Plural | greiges |
Sample Sentences
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Brilliant, sparkling reds will complement the bright, new beauty of Fall fashions and accent the subtle reserve of pale Priority beiges and greiges. [1943, S[idney] J[oseph] Perelman, “Bend Down, Sister”, in The Dream Department, New York, N.Y.: Random House, →OCLC, page 74:]
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The rise of the neutral family of greige colors has put the decorating emphasis squarely on accents. The August issue of Better Homes & Gardens, for example, features an article showing which accents look best with greiges and other popular colors. [1959, Paint, Oil and Chemical Review, volume 122, Chicago, Ill.: Trade Review Co., →OCLC, page 12, column 2:]
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To accessorize the server, we arranged a grouping of mahogany candlesticks in a variety of interesting shapes, a small greige-colored vase, and a platter that incorporates the colors of the candlesticks as well as the greige of the vase. [2005 September, Lauri Ward, “Views on Retirement: Moving from Coast to Coast”, in Home Therapy: Fast, Easy, Affordable Makeovers (A Perigee Book), Perigee trade paperback edition, New York, N.Y.: Penguin Group, published September 2006, →ISBN, page 256:]
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Canadian colour consultants The Paint People recently reached the same conclusion, declaring on YouTube “the death of greige: a paint colour category that has absolutely dominated interior design for well over a decade”. [2022 May 25, Elle Hunt, “It’s not beige, it’s not grey: it’s greige – and it’s why all our houses look the same”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 08 Sep 2023:]
Nouns inflected like greige
soldier's woundwort,
Nicosian,
whopper,
greypate,
tactile sign language,
chronotrope,
Rosie Lee,
dissentient,
photoinactivator,
sulphonediimine,
coastal waterfall,
residuary devise,
bituminization,
nitrosonaphthol,
smṛiti,
geosphere,
backscreen,
mensuralist,
flocculate,
flocculant, etc. (List truncated at 20 nouns)
Etymology
1. The adjective is borrowed from French grège and Middle French grège (“of silk: raw, unfinished; of the colour of such silk, greyish-beige”, adjective), from Italian greggio (“raw, unrefined; unbleached”); further etymology uncertain, possibly from Vulgar Latin *gregius (as in lana *gregia (“untreated wool as obtained from the flock”)), from grex (“flock (of sheep, etc.)”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ger- (“flock, herd; to gather”).
2. The noun is borrowed from French grège and Middle French grège (“raw or unfinished silk; the colour of such silk, greyish-beige”, noun), from Italian greggio: see above.
3. The spelling of the word is probably influenced by beige, likely because it was thought to be a blend of grey and beige. See: French Nouns '
grège', Italian Nouns '
greggio', French Nouns '
grège', Italian Nouns '
greggio'.