Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - white

 I. adjective  (~r; ~st)  Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hwit; akin to Old High German hwiz ~ and probably to Old Church Slavic svetu light, Sanskrit sveta ~, bright  Date: before 12th century  1.  a. free from color  b. of the color of new snow or milk; specifically of the color ~  c. light or pallid in color ~ hair lips ~ with fear  d. lustrous pale gray ; silvery; also made of silver  2.  a. being a member of a group or race characterized by light pigmentation of the skin  b. of, relating to, characteristic of, or consisting of ~ people or their culture  c. from the former stereotypical association of good character with northern European descent marked by upright fairness that's mighty ~ of you  3. free from spot or blemish: as  a.  (1) free from moral impurity ; innocent  (2) marked by the wearing of ~ by the woman as a symbol of purity a ~ wedding  b. unmarked by writing or printing  c. not intended to cause harm a ~ lie ~ magic  d. favorable, fortunate one of the ~ days of his life — Sir Walter Scott  4.  a. wearing or habited in ~  b. marked by the presence of snow ; snowy a ~ Christmas  5.  a. heated to the point of ~ness  b. notably ardent ; passionate ~ fury  6.  a. conservative or reactionary in political outlook and action  b. instigated or carried out by reactionary forces as a counterrevolutionary measure a ~ terror  7. of, relating to, or constituting a musical tone quality characterized by a controlled pure sound, a lack of warmth and color, and a lack of resonance  8. consisting of a wide range of frequencies — used of light, sound, and electromagnetic radiation  • whitish adjective  II. noun  Date: before 12th century  1. the achromatic object color of greatest lightness characteristically perceived to belong to objects that reflect diffusely nearly all incident energy throughout the visible spectrum  2.  a. a ~ or light-colored part of something: as  (1) a mass of albuminous material surrounding the yolk of an egg  (2) the ~ part of the eyeball  (3) the light-colored pieces in a 2-player board game; also the player by whom these are played  (4) the area of a page unmarked by writing, printing, or illustration  b.  (1) archaic a ~ target  (2) the fifth or outermost circle of an archery target; also a shot that hits it  3. one that is or approaches ~ in color: as  a. ~ clothing — often used in plural  b. ~ wine  c. a ~ mammal (as a horse or a hog)  d.  (1) a ~-colored product (as flour, pins, or sugar) — usually used in plural  (2) any of numerous butterflies (subfamily Pierinae of the family Pieridae) that usually have the ground color of the wings ~ and are related to the sulphur butterflies  e. plural teeth — used in the phrase pearly ~s  4. plural leukorrhea  5. a person belonging to a light-skinned race  6. often capitalized a member of a conservative or reactionary political group  III. transitive verb  (~d; whiting)  Etymology: Middle English, from ~, adjective  Date: before 12th century archaic ~n WHITE  I. biographical name Andrew Dickson 1832-1918 American educator & diplomat  II. biographical name Byron Raymond 1917-2002 American jurist  III. biographical name Edward Douglass 1845-1921 American jurist; chief justice United States Supreme Court (1910-21)  IV. biographical name Elwyn Brooks 1899-1985 American journalist & writer  V. biographical name Gilbert 1720-1793 English clergyman & naturalist  VI. biographical name Patrick Victor Martindale 1912-1990 Australian writer  VII. biographical name Stanford 1853-1906 American architect  VIII. biographical name Theodore Harold 1915-1986 American journalist & writer  IX. biographical name William Allen 1868-1944 American journalist & writer  X. geographical name  1. river 690 miles (1110 kilometers) N Arkansas & SW Missouri flowing SE into Mississippi River  2. river 250 miles (402 kilometers) NW Colorado & E Utah flowing W into Green River  3. river 50 miles (80 kilometers) SW Indiana flowing W into the Wabash  4. river 325 miles (523 kilometers) S South Dakota flowing E into Missouri River  5. river 130 miles (209 kilometers) NW Texas