English → Latin
“purple” in Latin
purpurathe purple-fish, a species of shellfish or mussel; the color magenta or purple, associated with nobility, power and thusostrumthe blood of the sea snail; variety of Tyrian purple that was redconchȳliumshellfish; oyster; purple (colour, garments)purpurātusclothed in purple (and hence, of high office); a Byzantine (Roman) emperor's childrenconchȳliātuspurple in colourpurpurāriuspurple
The English word purple itself goes back to Latin purpura.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
purple
The color, purpura (general term): ostrum (the liquor used in dyeing): conchylium (purple color PROP. so called): color purpureus (a purple tint or hue).
A purple garment, purpura; vestis purpurea; amictus purpureus; pallium purpureum clothed in purple, purpuratus; conchyliatus (Sen., Ep., 62, 2): to appear in gold and purple, insignem auro et purpura conspici. A dealer in purple garments, purpurarius (Inscript.; also, purple-dyer): to sell purple garments, negotium purpurarium exercere.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for purple?
- The usual Latin words for “purple” are purpura, ostrum, conchȳlium; also purpurātus, conchȳliātus, purpurārius. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.