Blue

blōō, n. the colour of the sky when unclouded—hence the sea, the sky, as in 'a bolt from the blue:' one of the seven primary colours.— adj. of the colour blue: learned, pedantic: indecent or obscene, as in blue stories.— ns. Blue′-beard , a monster who murders a series of wives in Perrault's famous conte , before he is himself cut off: one who is 'unfortunate' with his wives after the fashion of Henry VIII.; Blue′bell , a plant that bears blue bell-shaped flowers; Blue′-bird , a small American bird akin to the warblers; Blue′-black , black with a tinge of blue; Blue′-book , the name popularly applied to the reports and other papers printed by parliament, because usually stitched up in blue paper wrappers; Blue′-bot′tle , a common name for the Blue Cornflower: a familiar name for a policeman or beadle; Blue′-cap , a fish of the salmon kind with blue spots on its head: the blue titmouse: ( Shak. ) a Scotch man, from his blue bonnet; Blue′-eye , a beautiful little bird in New South Wales, one or the honey-eaters; Blue′-fish , a fish of the family Scomberidæ, abundant on the east coast of North America.— n.pl. Blue′-gowns , the name commonly given to a former cla of privileged mendicants in Scotland—called also the King's Bedesmen .— ns. Blue′-gra , a permanent gra found in Europe and North America; Blue′-gum , a kind of Eucalyptus; Blue′-jack′et , a seaman in the navy, as distinguished from a marine; Blue′-jay , a common North American bird of the IMG:c176__1908_Blue_Peter.png_utm_source_en.wiki source.org_utm_campaign_parser_utm_content_thumbnail_unscaled:Chambers_1908_Blue_Peter.png?utm_source=en.wiki source.org _campaign=parser _content=thumbnail_unscaled jay family; Blue′ne ; Blue′-nose , a nickname for a Nova Scotian; Blue′-pē′ter , a blue flag with white square in the centre, used in the navy as a signal for sailing; Blue′pill , a mercurial pill, used as a purgative in cases of torpid or inflamed liver; Blue′-stock′ing , a name given to learned ladies who display their acquirements in a pedantic manner, to the neglect of womanly graces—about 1750 Mrs Montague and others began to substitute literary conversation for cards, and the name implying a disregard for the conventional costume of polite society was suggested by the blue stockings of Benjamin Stilling fleet—the French bas bleu is a translation; Blue′-stone , blue copperas, sulphate of copper; Blue′-throat , or Blue′-breast , a beautiful and melodious bird, nearly allied to the nightingale; Blue′-wing , a kind of duck, either a sub-genus of Anas, or a special genus Cyan opter us—the best-known species, the Common or Lunate Blue-wing, the Blue-winged Teal of the United States.— adj. Blū′ish , slightly blue.— Blue blood , aristocratic blood—the sangre azul of the Spanish hidalgoes; Blue bonnet , a round flat cap of blue woollen, much worn in Scotland: a blue-bonneted Scotch peasant or soldier; Blue-bottle fly , the meat-fly or blow-fly; Blue-coat boy , a scholar of Christ's Hospital—also (from the blue coat having formerly been the usual dre of servants) a servant, beadle, soldier; Blue devil , an evil demon: ( pl. ) deep despondency, the apparitions seen in delirium tremens; Blue funk ( slang ), great terror; Blue ribbon , a term applied to any great prize, as the Derby stakes—from the blue ribbon worn by Knights of the Garter: the badge a umed by the so-called Blue Ribbon Army introduced from America in 1878; Blue water , the deep sea, as opposed to port or a narrow channel.— Light blue , and Dark blue , the distinctive colours in their athletic contests of Eton and Cambridge, and of Harrow and Oxford respectively; The Blues , the Royal Horse Guards; The blues (for blue devils), a colloquial expre ion for depre ion of spirits.— To be a blue , to be chosen to represent Oxford or Cambridge at an inter-university contest in cricket, football, rowing, or athletics; An old blue , one once so chosen.— To drink till all's blue , until everything around one looks blue; To look blue , to be down-spirited.— True blue , faithful to the principles of the political party wearing blue as its colour, in many places identified with Conservative. [M. E. blew —O. Fr. bleu , of Teut. origin; as also Scand. blá , which gave M. E. bla , blo , and modern blae .]