Rosy

How to spell rosy

4 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce rosy

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does rosy mean?

1. adjectiveHaving a warm pink or reddish colour, like that of a rose.
2. adjectivePromising, cheerful, or full of optimism about the future.

Rosy in a sentence

• The baby had soft rosy cheeks after her nap.

• The company painted a rosy picture of next year's profits.

• A rosy glow spread across the sky at dawn.

• His rosy outlook helped the whole team stay motivated.

Where does rosy come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word grows directly from 'rose', the name of the flower, which English inherited from the Latin rosa, a word for the bloom that was itself probably borrowed from Greek rhodon, meaning 'rose'. By adding the native English adjective ending '-y', which signals 'full of' or 'resembling', speakers formed a word meaning 'rose-coloured', that is, having the soft pink hue of the flower. It is recorded in English from around the fourteenth century, first describing complexions and dawns tinted with pink. From the literal colour the sense broadened to the figurative 'cheerful, hopeful, promising', because a healthy pink glow suggested good fortune and good health. The spelling trap is simply that '-y' attaches to 'rose' after the silent 'e' is dropped, so it is 'rosy' rather than 'rosey'.

How the word is built

• rose (the flower, from Latin rosa)
• -y (adjective suffix meaning 'having the quality of')