blush

noun

1. (countable, uncountable)An act of blushing; a pink or red glow on the face caused by embarrassment, shame, shyness, love, etc.

   “Why, Warwick, canst thou speak against thy liege, Whom thou obeyed’st thirty and six years, And not bewray thy treason with a blush?”

   “[…] when he perceived her industriously avoiding any explanation, he was contented to remain in ignorance, the rather as he was not without suspicion that there were some circumstances which must have raised her blushes, had she related the whole truth.”

   “Their eyes instantly met, and the cheeks of each were overspread with the deepest blush.”

   “It was a sudden revelation, a tinge like a blush which one tried to check and then, as it spread, one yielded to its expansion […]”

2. (countable, uncountable)A glow; a flush of colour, especially pink or red.

   “And now the rosy blush of morn began to mantle in the east, and soon the rising sun, emerging from amidst golden and purple clouds, shed his blithesome rays on the tin weathercocks of Communipaw.”

   “Each painting consists of a white aluminum disk, sprayed at the edges with a subtle blush of blue, pink or grey.”

3. (countable, figuratively, uncountable)A feeling or appearance of optimism.

   “1974, “April's Fading Carnation,” Time, 9 September, 1974,https://web.archive.org/web/20130813201436/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,904100,00.html The independence ceremony could not keep the blush of April's revolution, when carnations had seemed to sprout from every buttonhole, from fading.”

   “2016, David McKay, “AngloGold to fire up dividend in 2017 as net debt cut a third,” miningmx.com, 15 August, 2016, The weakening of local currencies – in Argentina, Australia and Brazil – gave a blush to the financial numbers. (As a whole, all-in sustaining costs (AISC) improved to an average of $911/oz compared with the $924/oz recorded in the first half of 2015).”

4. (countable, uncountable)A cosmetic, frequently a powder, used to redden the cheeks and lips.

   “The same rules that apply to face powder apply to powder blush, since neither contains water. Cream blush, however, should be replaced after a year. To prolong the life of any blush, clean your blush brush regularly and store the product in a dry place.”

5. (countable, uncountable)A color between pink and cream.

   “Makeup colors like ivory and blush dominate spring collections and have even infiltrated Burberry's shoes.”

6. (US, abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis, uncountable)Ellipsis of blush wine.

   “2016, Mishkah Abrahams, “Blush or Rosé? The Cape's Best Summer Drink,” capetownetc.com, 29 September, 2016, If you’re looking to indulge in some good food while you sip your blush, pair the Chardonnay-Pinot Noir with fresh, summer foods such as sushi, refreshing salads, delicious seafood and fruity summertime desserts.”

7. The collective noun for a group of boys.

   “a blush of boys”

   “I took the Red Cross senior lifesaving test, the one girl in a blush of boys taking the course.”

   “He had come with his own blush of boys. All afternoon they had shimmered upon the lawns.”

verb

1. (intransitive)To become red or pink in the face (and sometimes experience an associated feeling of warmth), especially due to shyness, love, shame, excitement, or embarrassment.

   “The love scene made him blush to the roots of his hair / to the tips of his ears.”

   “He wasn't used to this much attention, so he blushed as he saw dozens of pairs of eyes watching him.”

   “[…] they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush:”

   “text-To the Nuptial Bowre I led her blushing like the Morn:”

   “I wonder whether they [women] ever blush at those things by themselves, at which they have so charming a knack of blushing in company.—If not; and if blushing be a sign of grace or modesty, have not the sex as great a command over their blushes, as they are said to have over their tears?”

2. (figuratively, intransitive)To be shy, ashamed, or embarrassed (to do something).

   “While Cato lives, Caesar will blush to see Mankind enslaved, and be ashamed of Empire.”

   “He never blushed to rob a slave mother of her children, no matter how young or small.”

   “[…] in this enlightened age, we have much to blush for in the acts of our ancestors.”

3. (intransitive)To become red or pink.

   “The sun of heaven, methought, was loth to set, But stayed, and made the western welkin blush,”

4. (transitive)To suffuse with a blush; to redden; to pinken; to make rosy.

   “[the ghost] with the heart there cools and ne’er returneth To blush and beautify the cheek again.”

5. (copulative)To change skin color in the face (to a particular shade).

   “When he saw it, he blushed a beet red.”

   “I wasn't surprised, but it was embarrassing enough that I blushed a little pink.”

   “A few lost leaves blushed crimson with their shame, And drowned themselves despairing in the brook,”

   “[…] she […] blushed a warm and genuine-looking pink.”

6. (transitive)To express or make known by blushing.

   “Looking at me with a knowing glare, she blushed her discomfort with the situation.”

   “I’ll blush you thanks.”

   “The windows smiled, the door coaxed and beckoned, the creeper blushed confederacy.”

   ““I can see you yawning and stretching, Felix—not very polite.” Felix sprang to attention, metaphorically speaking, and blushed his apologies.”

7. (intransitive)To have a warm and delicate colour, like some roses and other flowers.

   “The garden was full of blossoms that blushed in myriad shades to form a beautiful carpet of color.”

   “Full many a Flower is born to blush unseen, And waste its Sweetness on the desart Air.”

   “[…] lanes which last night blushed full of flowers, to-day were pathless with untrodden snow;”

   “Natalie^’s pink bonnet blushed in the early sunshine […]”

8. (intransitive, obsolete)To glance with the eye, cast a glance.
9. (intransitive)Of dope or varnish: to develop an undesirable white precipitate on the surface, due to being applied in humid conditions.

   “Blushing is caused by doping under high relative humidity conditions.”

   “Why is retarder used in dope when the dope is being sprayed in humid conditions? The retarder slows the drying of the dope and keeps it from blushing.”