isabelline

See also: Isabelline

English

The isabelline shrike

Etymology

From isabella +‎ -ine.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪzəˈbɛlɪn/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Adjective

isabelline (comparative more isabelline, superlative most isabelline)

1. (chiefly of animals) Coloured a greyish yellow. [from 19th c.]

   The isabelline (or Daurian) shrike is a greyish-yellow and hunts from prominent perches, impaling the corpses on thorns as a larder.

   • 1871, Charles Darwin, “Birds—concluded”, in The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex. […], volume II, London: John Murray, […], →OCLC, Part II (Sexual Selection), page 224:

     As Mr. Tristram has remarked, in regard to the inhabitants of the Sahara, all are protected by their “isabelline or sand-colour.”

   • [1906, John Bernhard Smith, Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology‎^[1]:

     Isabelline -us: pale yellow with some red and brown [chronic lemon with a little carmine and roman sepia].]

Derived terms

• isabelline bear
• isabelline wheatear

Related terms

• isabella

Translations

Translations

• German: isabellfarben, isabellfarbig

Further reading

• Isabelline (colour) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “Isabel”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
• Michael Quinion (1996–2024) “Isabelline”, in World Wide Words.