coloration.

1. The particular shades and patterns visible on an animal, object, or surface.

2. The process of giving a material a particular shade or pattern.

3. A particular tone or influence that shapes how something is presented or understood.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• protective coloration
• vivid coloration
• varied coloration

On the page

The insect's coloration blended with the broken shadows on the bark.

Usage notes

Primary category: sensory / description. Forms: Countable or uncountable by context; countable singular coloration; plural colorations. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: description. Commonness: moderately common.