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se·pi·a

(sēpē-ə)

a. A dark brown ink or pigment originally prepared from the secretion of the cuttlefish.

b. A drawing or picture done in this pigment.

c. A photograph in a brown tint.

2. A dark grayish yellow brown to dark or moderate olive brown.

adj.

1. Of the color sepia.

2. Done or made in sepia.

[Middle English, cuttlefish, from Latin sēpia, cuttlefish, ink, from Greek sēpiā, cuttlefish; perhaps akin to sēpein, to make rotten.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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