noun, adjective, -er, -est, verb | 1. | a dark tertiary color with a yellowish or reddish hue. |
| 2. | a person whose skin has a dusky or light-brown pigmentation. |
| 3. | of the color brown. |
| 4. | (of animals) having skin, fur, hair, or feathers of that color. |
| 5. | sunburned or tanned. |
| 6. | (of persons) having the skin naturally pigmented a brown color. |
| 7. | to make or become brown. |
| 8. | to fry, sauté, or scorch slightly in cooking: to brown onions before adding them to the stew. The potatoes browned in the pan. |
| 9. | brown out, to subject to a brownout: The power failure browned out the southern half of the state. |
| 10. | browned off, Slang. angry; fed up. |
| 11. | do it up brown, Informal. to do thoroughly: When they entertain, they really do it up brown. |

| 1. | Charles Brock⋅den [brok-duh n] , 1771–1810, U.S. novelist. |
| 2. | Clifford (“Brownie” ), 1930–56, U.S. jazz trumpeter. |
| 3. | Edmund Gerald, Jr. (Jerry ), born 1938, U.S. politician: governor of California 1975–83. |
| 4. | Herbert Charles, 1912–2004, U.S. chemist, born in England: Nobel prize 1979. |
| 5. | James Nathaniel (Jimmy ), born 1936, U.S. football player and actor. |
| 6. | John (“Old Brown of Osawatomie” ), 1800–59, U.S. abolitionist: leader of the attack at Harpers Ferry, where he was captured, tried for treason, and hanged. |
| 7. | Margaret Wise, 1910–52, U.S. author noted for early-childhood books. |
| 8. | Olympia, 1835–1926, U.S. women's-rights activist and Universalist minister: first American woman ordained by a major church. |
| 9. | Robert, 1773–1858, Scottish botanist. |
| Brown, Clifford Known as "Brownie." 1930-1956. American jazz trumpeter whose work, especially as a member of the quintet he formed with Max Roach (1954-1956), influenced jazz improvisation and bop styles. |
| Brown, Herbert Charles 1912-2004. British-born American chemist. He shared a 1979 Nobel Prize for discoveries in the chemistry of boron and phosphorus. |
| Brown, James 1933-2006. American singer. First popular in the 1950s with hits like "Please, Please, Please," he is often called the "Godfather of Soul." |
| Brown, James Nathaniel Known as "Jim." Born 1936. American football player. A running back with the Cleveland Browns (1957-1971), he led the National Football League in rushing for eight of his nine seasons and is listed as one of the NFL all-time rushing leaders. |
| Brown, John 1800-1859. American abolitionist. In 1859 Brown and 21 followers captured the U.S. arsenal at Harper's Ferry as part of an effort to liberate Southern slaves. His group was defeated, and Brown was hanged after a trial in which he won sympathy as an abolitionist martyr. |
| Brown, Margaret Wise 1910-1952. American author of children's picture books, including the Noisy Book series (1939) and Goodnight Moon (1947). |
| Brown, Olympia 1835-1926. American Universalist minister and suffragist who was the first woman in the United States to be ordained in the ministry of an established denomination (1863). |
| Brown, Robert 1773-1858. British botanist who made an extensive collection of plants during a voyage to Australia. His observation of the irregular movement of pollen grains suspended in water led to the concept known as Brownian motion. |
Brown (broun), Michael. Born 1941.
American geneticist. He shared a 1985 Nobel Prize for discoveries related to cholesterol metabolism.
brown
any of a group of delicate butterflies in the family Nymphalidae (order Lepidoptera) that are abundant during summer months in the woods and grasslands of the United States and Europe. The adults are dull brown or grey, while the larvae possess small, forked tail-like appendages on their abdomens. Adult butterflies have brown wings with a span of 5 to 6 cm (2 to 2.4 inches) and conspicuous circular markings on them. These false "eyes" on the wings may serve to frighten or distract predatory birds.
Learn more about brown with a free trial on Britannica.com.