auburn
noun
a reddish-brown or golden-brown color.
auburn
1 American
[aw-bern]
/ ˈɔ bərn /
noun
adjective
Auburn
2
American
[aw-bern]
/ ˈɔ bərn /
noun
-
a city in central New York: state prison.
-
a city in E Alabama.
-
a city in W central Washington.
-
a city in SW Maine, on the Androscoggin River.
-
a city in central Massachusetts.
auburn
British
/ ˈɔːbən /
noun
Etymology
Origin of auburn
1400–50; late Middle English abo ( u ) rne blond < Middle French, Old French auborne, alborne < Latin alburnus whitish. See alburnum
Explanation
Auburn is a reddish-brown color. If you ask a hairdresser to color your hair auburn, you'll be disappointed to end up with bright red curls. Auburn almost always describes hair color — you might talk about your favorite childhood doll's long auburn hair, for example. The earliest meaning of auburn was "yellowish-white," not "reddish-brown," from the Medieval Latin alburnus, "off-white" or "whitish," from the Latin albus, or "white." In the 16th century it was influenced by the Middle English word brun, "brown," and the meaning changed.
Vocabulary lists containing auburn
Brown
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Twilight
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What If It's Us
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The avatar, with his auburn hair and super-white teeth, frequently winks at me and seems empathetic but can be moody or jealous if I introduce him to new people.
From BBC ● Jan. 30, 2026
Every autumn, as leaves turn from green to auburn and float to the ground, we turn into a nation of outdoor undertakers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2025
On this afternoon, he is dressed in black, auburn hair slicked back.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2025
According to that entry, the woman was thought to be 5-foot-5 with red or auburn hair.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 14, 2023
The man standing behind her is stout and florid, with shaggy auburn hair.
From "Orphan Train" by Christina Baker Kline
Cook’s fondness for his alma mater Auburn University, where he earned a degree in industrial engineering, periodically brings him back to campus for special events or football games.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 29, 2026
“They were like, ‘He’s not available for any questions,’” recalled Eves, a longtime Apple fan and an Auburn engineering student at the time.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 29, 2026
Hunter, 24, was a 2025 fourth-round draft pick from Auburn.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
It didn’t take him long after enrolling at Auburn to make his mark.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
In Auburn alone, about a hundred mediums practiced among its roughly ten thousand citizens.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
