paint the town red

paint

[peynt]
noun
1.
a substance composed of solid coloring matter suspended in a liquid medium and applied as a protective or decorative coating to various surfaces, or to canvas or other materials in producing a work of art.
2.
an application of this.
3.
the dried surface pigment: Don't scuff the paint.
4.
the solid coloring matter alone; pigment.
5.
facial cosmetics, especially lipstick, rouge, etc., designed to heighten natural color.
6.
Chiefly Western U.S. a pied, calico, or spotted horse or pony; pinto.
verb (used with object)
7.
to coat, cover, or decorate (something) with paint: to paint a fence.
8.
to produce (a picture, design, etc.) in paint: to paint a portrait.
9.
to represent in paint, as in oils, tempera, or watercolor: to paint an actress as the Muse of tragedy.
10.
to depict as if by painting; describe vividly in words: The ads painted the resort as a winter wonderland.
11.
to color by or as if by painting: Sunset painted the clouds pink.
12.
to apply a substance to, as a liquid medicine or a cosmetic: to paint a cut with iodine.
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verb (used without object)
13.
to coat or cover anything with paint.
14.
to engage in painting as an art: She has begun to paint in her spare time.
15.
to put on or use facial cosmetics.
Idioms
16.
paint the town red, Informal. to celebrate boisterously, especially by making a round of stops at bars and nightclubs. Also, paint the town.
Origin:
1200–50; Middle English peinten (v.) < Old French peint, past participle of peindre < Latin pingere to paint; see picture

Related forms
paint·a·ble, adjective
paint·less, adjective
out·paint, verb (used with object)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To paint the town red
Collins
World English Dictionary
paint (peɪnt) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  a substance used for decorating or protecting a surface, esp a mixture consisting of a solid pigment suspended in a liquid, that when applied to a surface dries to form a hard coating
2.  a dry film of paint on a surface
3.  the solid pigment of a paint before it is suspended in liquid
4.  informal face make-up, such as rouge
5.  short for greasepaint
 
—vb
6.  to make (a picture) of (a figure, landscape, etc) with paint applied to a surface such as canvas
7.  to coat (a surface) with paint, as in decorating
8.  (tr) to apply (liquid) onto (a surface): her mother painted the cut with antiseptic
9.  (tr) to apply make-up onto (the face, lips, etc)
10.  (tr) to describe vividly in words
11.  informal paint the town red to celebrate uninhibitedly; go on a spree
 
[C13: from Old French peint painted, from peindre to paint, from Latin pingere to paint, adorn]
 
'painty
 
—adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

paint
early 13c., from O.Fr. peinter, from peint, pp. of peindre "to paint," from L. pingere "to paint," from PIE base *pik-/*pig- "cut." Sense evolution between PIE and L. was, presumably, from "decorate with cut marks" to "decorate" to "decorate with color." Cf. Skt. pingah "reddish," pesalah "adorned,
decorated, lovely," pimsati "hews out, cuts, carves, adorns;" O.C.S. pegu "variegated;" Gk. poikilos "variegated;" O.H.G. fehjan "to adorn;" O.C.S. pisati, Lith. piesiu "to write." Probably representing the "cutting" branch of the family are O.E. feol (see file (n.)); O.C.S. pila "file, saw," Lith. pela "file." The noun is from c.1600. The verb meaning "to color with paint" (mid-13c.) is earlier than the artistic sense of "to make a picture of" (late 13c.) and older than painting in the sense of "an artist's picture in paint" (late 14c.); but painter is older in the sense of "artist who paints pictures" (mid-14c.) than in the sense of "workman who colors surfaces with paint" (c.1400). To paint the town (red) "go on a spree" first recorded 1884; to paint (someone or something) black "represent it as wicked or evil" is from 1590s. Adj. paint-by-numbers "simple" is attested by 1970.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

paint (pānt)
n.
A solution or suspension of one or more medicaments applied to the skin with a brush or large applicator. v. paint·ed, paint·ing, paints
To apply medicine to; swab.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary

paint the town red definition


To go carousing: “Arnie and a few of his buddies drove off in a big car Friday night and really painted the town red.”

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary

paint definition


  1. n.
    a tattoo. (The same as ink sense 3.) : When dya get the new paint?
  2. n.
    tattoos in general; the amount of tattooing on someone's body. (The same as ink sense 4.) : He's got paint covering his back!
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source

paint the town (red) definition


  1. tv.
    to go out and celebrate; to go on a drinking bout; to get drunk. : They were out painting the town red last night.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Easton
Bible Dictionary

Paint definition


Jezebel "painted her face" (2 Kings 9:30); and the practice of painting the face and the eyes seems to have been common (Jer. 4:30; Ezek. 23:40). An allusion to this practice is found in the name of Job's daughter (42:14) Kerenhappuch (q.v.). Paintings in the modern sense of the word were unknown to the ancient Jews.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

paint the town red

Go on a spree, as in Whenever they go to New York they want to paint the town red. The precise allusion of this term is disputed. Some believe it refers to setting something on fire; others point to a vague association of the color red with violence. [Late 1800s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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