green

[[t]gri͟ːn[/t]]

♦

greens, greener, greenest

1) COLOUR Green is the colour of grass or leaves.

...shiny red and green apples...

Yellow and green together make a pale green.

2) ADJ-GRADED A place that is green is covered with grass, plants, and trees and not with houses or factories.

Cairo has only thirteen square centimetres of green space for each inhabitant.

Derived words:

greenness N-UNCOUNT

...the lush greenness of the river valleys.

3) ADJ: ADJ n Green issues and political movements relate to or are concerned with the protection of the environment.

The power of the Green movement in Germany has made that country a leader in the drive to recycle more waste materials.

4) ADJ-GRADED If you say that someone or something is green, you mean they harm the environment as little as possible.

...trying to persuade governments to adopt greener policies...

Our children are being educated to be green in everything they do.

Derived words:

greenness N-UNCOUNT

A Swiss company offers to help environmental investors by sending teams round factories to ascertain their greenness.

5) N-COUNT: usu pl Greens are members of green political movements.

The Greens see themselves as a radical alternative to the two major British political parties.

6) N-COUNT A green is a smooth, flat area of grass around a hole on a golf course.

...the 18th green.

7) N-COUNT A green is an area of land covered with grass, especially in a town or in the middle of a village.

...the village green.

8) N-IN-NAMES: n N Green is used in the names of places that contain or used to contain an area of grass.

...Bethnal Green.

9) N-PLURAL You can refer to the cooked leaves of vegetables such as spinach or cabbage as greens.

Eat your greens.

10) ADJ-GRADED You can describe fruit and vegetables as green when they are unripe and not ready to be eaten.

Pick and ripen any green fruits in a warm dark place.

11) ADJ-GRADED If you say that someone is green, you mean that they have had very little experience of life or a particular job.

He was a young lad, very green, very immature.

12) PHRASE: v-link PHR If you say that someone is green with envy, you mean that they are very envious indeed.

13) PHRASE If someone has green fingers, they are very good at gardening and their plants grow well. [BRIT]

You don't need green fingers to fill your home with lush leaves.

(in AM, use a green thumb)

14) to give someone the green light → see light