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Glite Dictionary
🌿 A dye plant 💙 A blue dye
anil

anil

9.9
A bush that people grow to make blue dye
  • noun
  • /ˈænɪl/
translation icon : anil
  • Early colonists in the Caribbean relied on anil as a valuable export crop.

Examples

  • The farmers planted anil to harvest indigo dye for the textile industry.

  • Traditional methods for extracting dye from anil involve fermenting its leaves.

  • The anil plant is essential for producing indigo dye.

  • Many artists prefer to use anil for its vibrant color.

  • Farmers in the Caribbean cultivate anil for its valuable indigo dye.

  • In traditional dyeing processes, anil is used to create rich blue fabrics.

  • The anil plant is an important source of natural dye in many cultures.

Synonyms

Indigofera anil
vsanil
  • Specialized
9.9

A shrub from the West Indies and South America that people grow for indigo dye

is the common or shorter name rather than the formal botanical label
Indigofera suffruticosa
vsanil
  • Specialized
9.9

A shrub from the West Indies and South America grown for its leaves to make indigo dye

is the common name used instead of the full scientific species name
Indigofera
vsanil
  • Specialized
9.9

A tropical herb or shrub used to make indigo dye

is narrower, meaning the single shrub rather than the whole plant genus

Compounds

Indigofera anil
  • Specialized
9.9

A shrub from the West Indies and South America that people grow for indigo dye

Surface Forms

anil singular
anils plural

Etymology

Anil originally named the plant used to make a deep blue color, and the word traces back through Arabic al-nīl to the Sanskrit nīla meaning 'dark blue'. That's why anil can mean the shrub that is grown to produce indigo dye.