cinnabar

Etymology

First attested in the mid-15th century. From Middle English cynabare, from Old French cinabre, from Latin cinnabaris, from Ancient Greek κιννάβαρι (kinnábari), of unknown origin.

Pronunciation

• enPR: sĭnʹ-ə'bär; IPA^(key): /ˈsɪn.əˌbɑɹ/
  • (Received Pronunciation, General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈsɪn.əˌbɑː(ɹ)/
  • (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈsɪn.əˌbɑɹ/

Noun

cinnabar (countable and uncountable, plural cinnabars)

1. A deep red mineral, mercuric sulfide, HgS; the principal ore of mercury; such ore used as the pigment vermilion.

   Synonym: (obsolete) æthiops mineral

2. A bright red colour tinted with orange.

   cinnabar:  

3. (countable) A species of moth, Tyria jacobaeae, having red patches on its predominantly black wings.

   Synonym: cinnabar moth

   • 2015, Norman Maclean, A Less Green and Pleasant Land, page 223:

     There are a few day-flying exceptions such as hummingbird hawk-moths, silver Ys, cinnabars, scarlet tigers and burnets but, in general, knowledge of moths lags behind that of butterflies.

4. (in “Cinnabar Panacea”) The Elixir of Life.

Adjective

cinnabar (comparative more cinnabar, superlative most cinnabar)

1. Of a bright red colour tinted with orange.

See also

• (reds) red; blood red, brick red, burgundy, cardinal, carmine, carnation, cerise, cherry, cherry red, Chinese red, cinnabar, claret, crimson, damask, fire brick, fire engine red, flame, flamingo, fuchsia, garnet, geranium, gules, hot pink, incarnadine, Indian red, magenta, maroon, misty rose, nacarat, oxblood, pillar-box red, pink, Pompeian red, poppy, raspberry, red violet, rose, rouge, ruby, ruddy, salmon, sanguine, scarlet, shocking pink, stammel, strawberry, Turkey red, Venetian red, vermilion, vinaceous, vinous, violet red, wine ^{(Category: en:Reds)}
• mercury

Further reading

• David Barthelmy (1997–2024) “Cinnabar”, in Webmineral Mineralogy Database.
• “cinnabar”, in Mindat.org‎, Hudson Institute of Mineralogy, 2000–2024.
• cinnabar on Wikipedia.Wikipedia