bistre

American  

[bis-ter] / ˈbɪs tər /

Or bister

noun

1. a brown pigment extracted from the soot of wood, often used in pen and wash drawings.

2. a yellowish to dark-brown color.

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bistre British  

/ ˈbɪstə /

noun

1. a transparent water-soluble brownish-yellow pigment made by boiling the soot of wood, used for pen and wash drawings

2. 1. a yellowish-brown to dark brown colour

   2. ( as modifier )

      bistre paint

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Other Word Forms

• bistred adjective

Etymology

Origin of bistre

1720–30; < French, Middle French, of obscure origin

Example Sentences

Portrait of Madame de Pompadour and of Louis XV in two states, coloured and bistre.

From A Catalogue of Books in English Later than 1700 (Vol 3 of 3) Forming a portion of the library of Robert Hoe by Various

No. 159 of one hundred and sixty copies printed on Japanese vellum, with full-page illustrations in two colours, black and bistre.

From A Catalogue of Books in English Later than 1700 (Vol 2 of 3) Forming a portion of the library of Robert Hoe by Various

A very singular drawing in pen and ink and bistre.

From The Dance of Death Exhibited in Elegant Engravings on Wood with a Dissertation on the Several Representations of that Subject but More Particularly on Those Ascribed to Macaber and Hans Holbein by Douce, Francis

Why, my boys rub blue and bistre till their faces run of a stream.

From Pencil Sketches or, Outlines of Character and Manners by Leslie, Eliza

No. 403 of four hundred and fifteen copies printed on large paper, with a duplicate set of the six engravings in bistre on Japan paper, and the initial letters and rules printed in red.

From A Catalogue of Books in English Later than 1700 (Vol 3 of 3) Forming a portion of the library of Robert Hoe by Various