Word of the Day: Virescent
virescent \vuh-RESS-unt\ adjective
*1 : beginning to be green : greenish
2 : developing or displaying the condition of becoming green due
to the development of chloroplasts in plant organs (as petals)
normally white or colored
Example sentence:
Buds formed on the bare trees, infusing the stark branches with a
slight virescent tint.
[I'm also thinking of it as a descriptor to describe that 'green around the gills' look that you get when you overeat!]
Did you know?
"Virescent" first appeared in English in 1826. It derives from the
present participle of "virescere," a Latin verb meaning "to become
green" and a form of another verb, "virere," meaning "to be green."
"Virere" also gave us another adjective meaning green, "verdant," only
the route to that adjective takes a stop at the Old French "verdoier"
("to be green"). "Virescent" has seen occasional general use, as when
Thomas Hardy wrote, in his 1881 novel _A Laodicean_, of "[t]he summer
... tipping every twig with a virescent yellow." But it is nowadays
found most frequently in scientific contexts, especially those
pertaining to botany.
*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.
