MAROON Definition & Meaning

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maroon

[ muh-roon ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

adjective

dark brownish-red.
Chiefly British.
1. a loudly exploding firework consisting of a cardboard container filled with gunpowder.
2. a similar firework used as a danger or warning signal, as by railway brakemen.

maroon

[ muh-roon ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

verb (used with object)

to put ashore and abandon on a desolate island or coast by way of punishment or the like, as was done by buccaneers.
to place in an isolated and often dangerous position:
The rising floodwaters marooned us on top of the house.
to abandon and leave without aid or resources:
Having lost all his money, he was marooned in the strange city.

noun

(often initial capital letter) any of a group of Black people, descended from fugitive slaves of the 17th and 18th centuries, living in the West Indies and Guiana, especially in mountainous areas.
a person who is marooned:
Robinson Crusoe lived for years as a maroon.

maroon

/ ��əˈ��ː�� /

verb

to leave ashore and abandon, esp on an island
to isolate without resources

noun

a descendant of a group of runaway slaves living in the remoter areas of the Caribbean or Guyana
informal.
a person who has been marooned, esp on an island

maroon

/ ��əˈ��ː�� /

noun

1. a dark red to purplish-red colour
2. ( as adjective )
  a maroon carpet
an exploding firework, esp one used as a warning signal

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�y��vlog History and Origins

Origin of maroon¹

First recorded in 1585–95; from French marron literally, “chestnut (nut and color), firecracker,” Middle French, from Italian marrone “chestnut, brown”; further origin unknown

Origin of maroon²

First recorded in 1660–70; from French mar(r)on, apparently from Colonial Spanish ��ó�� “wild”; first used in reference to domestic animals that escaped into the woods, later to people who escaped slavery; cimarron

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�y��vlog History and Origins

Origin of maroon¹

C17 (applied to fugitive slaves): from American Spanish ��ó�� wild, literally: dwelling on peaks, from Spanish cima summit

Origin of maroon²

C18: from French, literally: chestnut, marron ¹

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Lindsey’s parents fly to the Chinese city and fearfully track their eldest’s recovery, leaving their younger daughter, Grace, who was adopted from China, marooned at summer camp with no information.

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For United, it has been a historically miserable season, marooned in 14th place, still waiting to win back-to-back Premier League games and contemplating their worst points record in the competition.

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But once she blooms, viewers can expect to see Putricia unfold a vibrant maroon or crimson skirt, known as a spathe, around her spadix which is the large spike in the middle of the plant.

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The stupendous floods of 1938 — floods so profound that they marooned movie stars on their San Fernando Valley ranches and delayed the Oscars by three days — sent whole prospecting families hustling back down the mountains.

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As for Usyk, the Crimea-born champion - wearing a striking maroon outfit with embroidery - was serenaded to the top table by a Ukrainian singer and a choir consisting of a dozen suited men.

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