claret

/ˈklɛrət/

Other forms: clarets; clareted

Claret is a deep, purple-red color, as well as the name of a wine of the same hue.

The color claret is named for the rich, jewel-toned red of claret wine, which is another name for wine from the French Bordeaux region. The term claret is mainly used in the U.K. — in France or the U.S. you'd just call it "Bordeaux." It originally referred to a pink wine once produced in that area, from the Latin root clarus, "light," but came to be associated with the darker red of a dry Bordeaux.

Definitions of claret

1. noun

   dry red Bordeaux or Bordeaux-like wine
   synonyms: red Bordeaux

   types:

   Saint Emilion

   full-bodied red wine from around the town of Saint Emilion in Bordeaux

   type of:

   red wine

   wine having a red color derived from skins of dark-colored grapes

   Bordeaux, Bordeaux wine

   any of several red or white wines produced around Bordeaux, France or wines resembling them
2. verb

   drink claret
   “They were clareting until well past midnight”

   type of:

   booze, drink, fuddle

   consume alcohol
3. noun

   a dark purplish-red color
   type of:

   dark red

   a red color that reflects little light