▪ I. umber, n.1 Now dial.
Forms: 4–7 vmbre, umbre, 4–7 vmber (7 vmbier), 5– umber; 5 owmbre, ovmbre, ovmbere; dial. 7 oumar, 7–9 oumer, 9 oumber, oomer, etc.
[a. OF. umbre (ombre) or ad. L. umbra shade, shadow. Cf. F. ombre, Pr. umbra, ombra, It. ombra, It. and Sp. ombria, Sp. and Pg. umbria.]
1. Shade, shadow.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 8017 Qua mai rest him in þer vmber, Es nathing þat mai him cumber. Ibid. 8451 Vnder þe vmber o þat tre, Þe kind o thinges lerd he. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 524 Sesounez schal yow neuer sese of sede ne of heruest, Ne hete, ne no harde forst, vmbre ne droȝþe. 1382 Wyclif Ps. cvi. 10 The sitteris in dercnessis, and in the vmbre of deth. c 1407 Lydg. Reson & Sens. 1242 Pallas..Fleyng had about her hede Of Cynetys ful grete novmbre, Makyng in maner of an ovmbre. c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. xi. 329 Or flouris swete of vyne or other tre, In vmbre dried, may reserued be. 1470–85 Malory Arthur viii. i. 274 Thenne the gentylwoman leyd her vnder an vmbre of a grete tree. 1549 Compl. Scot. vi. 56 The mune is maid obscure..be rason that the vmbre and schaddou of the eird empeschis hyr to resaue lycht fra the soune. 1572 J. Bossewell Armorie ii. 25 Of whatsoever colour the fielde is of, the vmbre or shadowe of the token or signe borne in the fielde is traced of a contrarie color. 1673 Yorkshire Dial. 32 (E.D.S.), Put th' Whyes a-mel yon Stirks an' Steers, I' th' Oumar, an' sneck the lear-deers. 1677 Nicolson Cumbld. Gloss. in Trans. Roy. Soc. Lit. (1870) IX. 317 Oumer, shade. [Hence in Ray, etc.] 1781– in northern dial. glossaries (Eng. Dial. Dict. s.v. Oumer). |
† b. The shadow of the pointer on a sundial or quadrant. Obs.
| 1382 Wyclif 2 Kings xx. 11 The prophete..brouȝt aȝeyn the vmbre by the lynys..in the orloge of Achaz. a 1400 in Halliwell Rara Mathem. (1841) 58 Byholde vpon what place of þe quadrant þe perpendicle falles, for ouþer it wille falle on þe vmbre toward or on þe vmbre froward. |
† c. Reflection. (Cf. shadow n. 5.) Obs.
| c 1407 Lydg. Reson & Sens. 3846 Love him shal so dysfigure, To doon hys besy myght and peyn Hys ovne vmbre to restreyn. |
† 2. In various figurative uses. Obs.
| c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. I. 355 Þe vertue of God makiþ umbre, whanne in a lowe place it lettiþ heete of synne. c 1425 St. Mary of Oignies ii. x. 30 in Anglia VIII. 176 After þat she hadde sitten..vndir þe vmbre of hym þat she desyred. 1430–40 Lydg. Bochas i. xii. (1544) 23 In euery cost his renoun did shyne. The fame therof was clipsed w{supt} none vmbre. c 1450 ― Secrees 402 Your studye ay stood, and your dilligence bryght as Apollo, with oute shadwe or Owmbre. 1481 Caxton Botoner's Tulle on Old Age Pref., Whiche lytil volume I haue emprysed tenprynte vnder the vmbre and shadowe of the noble protection of our moost dradde souerayn. 1573 in Cath. Tractates (S.T.S.) 26 In the synagoge, quhilk wes bot ane schaddou and vmbre of the trew kirk. 1581 Ibid. 137. |
† 3. under (the) umber of (or for), under the cloak or colour of; on pretence of. Obs.
| 1423 Jas. I Kingis Q. cxxxiv, Suich feynit treuth is all bot trechorye, Vnder the vmbre of hid ypocrisye. 1430 Rolls of Parlt. IV. 501/1 To considre..how under ye umbre of such Vidimus, all an hole Navy of Adversaries myght..daily vetaill, stuffe and refreshe yair partie. 1475 Bk. Noblesse (Roxb.) 3 Tho roughe subtile wirkingis conspired and wroughte be the Frenshe partie undre the umbre and coloure of trewis. 1518 H. Watson Hist. Oliver of Castile (Roxb.) P 4 How Arthur vnder the vmbre for to goo to Saynt James, departed for to fynde his felowe Olyuer. |
† 4. The visor of a helmet. Cf. umbrere. Obs.
| 14.. Guy Warw. (C.) 8346 He opyned vmber that tyde, And keeled hym on euery syde. 1555 Lydgate's Chron. Troy iii. xxii. P j/2 His swerde so mightely gan race Through the vmber [MSS. vmbrere, vmbrel] into Troylus face, That he hym gaue a large mortall wounde. Ibid. P i j/2 Cedeus w{supt} his swerde such a stroke him sette, That through y⊇ vmber out his eye he smette. 1603 Stow Surv. 385 The Esquier tooke his axe, and smote many blowes on the knight, and made him let fall his axe, and brake vp his vmber three times. 1616 J. Lane Contn. Sqr.'s T. xi. 261 The next that entred was a mightie knight..Whose bever and his vmbier closd vp weare. |
▪ II. umber, n.2
(ˈʌmbə(r))
Forms: 5 vmbre, 6– umber (6–7 vmber), 7, 9 humber, 7–8 omber; 7 omer, 9 dial. oumer.
[a. OF. umbre, ombre (also humble; mod.F. umble, omble; Sp. umbla, ombla, Pg. umbla), or ad. L. umbra umbra2.]
= grayling.
| 1496 Fysshynge w. Angle (1883) 23 The grayllynge by a nother name callyd vmbre is a delycyous fysshe to mannys mouthe. a 1550 Leland Itin. (1769) V. 68 In the Lake be Umbers, yn Walsche Cangans, and great Store of Pykes, wherof many cum into Wy River. 1615 Markham Pleas. Princes iv. (1635) 23 The Humber haunts the clayie Rivers of hie Countries. Ibid. vi. 32 The Barbell, or Grayling, which some call the Vmber, are very crafty Fishes. 1662 R. Venables Exper. Angler v. 55 The Umber is generally taken with the same baits as the Trout. a 1672 Willughby Hist. Pisc. (1686) Tab. N. 8 Thymus et Thymalus Salv[ian], a Greyling or Omer. Eboracensibus. 1740 R. Brookes Art of Angling i. ix. 33 The Grayling or Umber..is in proportion neither so broad nor so thick as a Trout. 1758 Descr. Thames 178 Next to the Trout I place the Graylin or Umber, which are thought by some to differ. 1817–22 Encycl. Metrop. (1845) XIV. 585/1 The Grayling, or Umber, spawns in May, and is in the best condition in November. 1853 J. Jackson (title), The Practical Fly-Fisher, more particularly for Grayling or Umber. |
▪ III. ˈumber, n.3
Also 6–9 umbre, 6–7 vmber.
[ad. F. ombre (also terre d'ombre) or It. ombra (also terra di ombra), either meaning ‘shadow’ (see umber n.1) or from L. Umbra, fem. of Umber, belonging to the province Umbria (cf. Umbrica crēta, Pliny). Hence also G. umbra, umber-erde, Da. and Sw. umber, umbra, Du. omber, but Sp. and Pg. sombra (= shadow) and tierra (Pg. terra) de sombra.]
1. A brown earth used as a pigment; also, the colour of this.
| 1568 [see umber-colour, sense 3]. 1599 B. Jonson Cynthia's Revels v. ii, The gloves are right, sir: you shall bury them..seven years, and they shall still retain their first scent, true Spanish. There's ambre in the umbre. 1600 Shakes. A.Y.L. i. iii. 114 Ile put my selfe in poore and meane attire, And with a kinde of vmber smirch my face. 1612 Peacham Gentl. Exerc. 80 Vmber is a more sad colour. c 1650 in Norgate Miniatura (1919) 97 For the Black Cercle of the eye take Umber, Coale black, and a little whyte. 1753 Chambers' Cycl. Suppl. App., Umber. This earth when burnt makes a good shade for gold. 1755 Gentl. Mag. XXV. 447/2 Sea sand, that in colour resembles unburnt umber, but is lighter and more yellow. 1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 744 Dark back-grounds may be composed of bistre, umber, or Cologne earth. 1842 Loudon Suburban Hort. 167 Certain colours, having a greater affinity for water than for oil (such as blacks, umbers, and ochres), are liable to be affected by damp. 1899 Pall Mall Mag. Jan. 90 The scheme of colour is composed of the yellows, umbers, and reds which Rembrandt loved so intensely. |
b. burnt umber, a special preparation of the pigment rendering it redder in colour. Also attrib.
| c 1650 E. Norgate Miniatura (1919) 40 The deepning being made with Lake and burnt Umber, the heigthning of pure Gold. 1660 Albert Durer Revived 12 Shadow it with the water of Burnt Umber. 1787 W. Williams Mechanic Oil Colours 42 Burnt umber, a very quick drier. 1843 Winsor & Newton Hand-bk. Water Col. 27 Burnt Umber, a quiet brown colour, affording clear and warm shadows. 1843 Thackeray Jerome Paturot Wks. 1900 XIII. 388 The Jew-boy.., the burnt-umber Malay who sweeps crossings, save money. 1886 Ruskin Præterita I. 396 To crumble burnt umber with a dry brush for foliage and foreground. |
2. One or other of various moths.
| 1832 J. Rennie Consp. Butterfl. & M. 103 The Scarce Umbre (L. prosapiaria) appears in October or November. Ibid., The Umbre (C. defoliaria) appears the end of October, in woods and copses. 1887 Nicholson's Illustr. Dict. Gardening IV. 122 Hybernia defoliaria, or the Mottled Umber.., and H. aurantiaria, or the Scarce Umber. |
3. attrib. and Comb., as umber-colour; umber-black, umber-brown, umber-coloured, umber-rufous, umber-tinted adjs.; † umber-owe, a kind of madder.
| 1845 Encycl. Metrop. XXV. 882/2 A tufted *umber-black plant. |
| 1832 T. Brown Bk. Butterflies & M. (1834) I. 171 The pupa is of a burnt *umber-brown colour. 1859 B. Clemens Tineina N. Amer. (1872) 25 The head is umbre-brown. 1887 W. Phillips Brit. Discomycetes 59 The hymenium is dark umber brown, externally a little lighter. |
| c 1568 in Swayne Sarum Churchw. Acc. (1896) 116 Y⊇ paynter for *vmber coller. 1816 W. Smith Strata Ident. 3 The soil is of a mellow brown or umber colour. |
| 1817 Stephens in Shaw's Gen. Zool. X. ii. 335 The upper parts of the body *umber-coloured. 1832 T. Brown Bk. Butterflies & M. (1834) I. 217 With..three umber-coloured spots towards the lower edge of the under wings. |
| 1881 Instr. Census Clerks (1885) 85 *Umber Mine Agent. |
| Ibid., *Umber Miner. |
| a 1661 Fuller Worthies, Kent ii. (1662) 57 There are three kinds thereof. 1. Crop-Madder. 2. *Umber-owe. 3. Pipe or Fat-Madder. |
| 1836 Berkeley Fungi in Smith's Eng. Flora V. ii. 17 Pileus dry squamulose *umber-rufous. |
| 1895 Daily News 20 Dec. 5/2 Delicately arched nostrils, sensuously-moulded lips, and *umber-tinted hair. |
b. Attrib. in the sense of ‘umber-coloured’.
| 1802 Shaw Gen. Zool. III. i. 226 Umbre Lizard. 1803 Ibid. IV. ii. 384 Umbre Acanthurus. 1832 J. Rennie Consp. Butterfl. & M. 103 The Umbre Link (Hibernia connectaria) appears in November and December. 1866 Miss Mulock Noble Life x, The black woods—black, or with a faint umber shadow running through them. 1870 Disraeli Lothair xxxviii, The golden and umber vapours fell into forms that..depicted the objects of his frequent meditation. 1881 E. A. Ormerod Injur. Insects (1890) 337 The caterpillar of the Mottled Umber Moth is a ‘looper’. |
▪ IV. umber n.4
aphetic f. number n.
The form imber (n. and v.) is found in modern East Anglian dialect. (Cf. umber v.2)
| c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 4319 He sclow that tyme withouten vmbre Mo Troyens that I can numbre. 1746 Exmoor Vocab. in Gentl. Mag. July 408 Umber, number. |
▪ V. umber
variant of umbre (the bird).
▪ VI. ˈumber, v.1 Chiefly dial.
In 5 oumbre, owmbre, 7 vmbre, 9 dial. oumer, owmer, oomer, etc.
[ad. OF. umbrer, ombrer (mod.F. ombrer to shade in painting), ad. L. umbrāre (whence also It. ombrare), f. umbra umber n.1]
trans. To shade, to protect.
| c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) xvii. 78 It will couer and oumbre all his body for þe sonne. Ibid. xxii. 100 It will couer all þe body and owmbre it fra þe sonne. 1611 Cotgr., Ombré, vmbred, or shadowed; (a tearme in Blason). 1790 Grose Prov. Gloss., Oumert, shaded with trees or buildings. 1828 Craven Gloss. (ed. 2), Oumer, to shadow. Ibid., That birk oumers 't gait. a 1867 in Harland & Wilkinson Lanc. Folk-Lore 60 T' leaves on t' trees, they owm'ered t' land, And fadin' was the summer light. |
Hence ˈumbering ppl. a.
| 1872 Dixon Milkin' Time (E.D.D.), The branches of the owmering yew. 1880 A. B. Todd August Poet. Wks. (1906) 209 When winds grew hush'd, and umbering trees were still. |
▪ VII. † ˈumber, v.2 Obs.—1
In 5 vmbre.
[Aphetic f. number v. Cf. umber n.4]
trans. To number.
| c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 370 He sclow champiouns withouten nombre, So manye that no man myȝt hem vmbre. |
▪ VIII. ˈumber, v.3
Also 7 vmbre, 7–8 umbre.
[f. umber n.3]
trans. To stain or paint with umber; to make of a dark brown colour.
| 1610 B. Jonson Alch. v. v, You..told her, you had tane the paines To dye your beard, and vmbre o'er your face. 1615 Markham Pleas. Princes ii. (1635) 7 He which is a master in this Art will Vmber, and darken the Rod. 1623 Middleton & Rowley Sp. Gipsy ii. i, No red-ochre rascals umbered with soot and bacon as the English gipsies are. 1735 Dict. Polygraph. I. Q 5 After the faces have been umbred, shadow the hair. 1813 Hogg Queen's Wake i. Young Kennedy i, When the gusts of October had rifled the thorn, Had dappled the woodland, and umbered the plain. |