''Tinge"

Question

Hello,Could you tell me please if the word 'Tinge' can be used in this way?'To feel a tinge of envy' or to feel an envious tingeTo feel a tinge of happiness= to feel a happy tingeTo feel a tinge of fear=  to feel a fearful tingeI came across this sentence: The sadness of the scene imparted a somber tinge to the feelings of Mr.Winkle'  and  I thought if the word 'Tinge' can be preceded by other adjectives?

Clive · Accepted Answer

Hi,
Consider these two words.
tinge - a touch or trace of something.
Commonly used to describe something that is seen.
eg Her red dress has a tinge of mauve.
eg Her face had a tinge of sadness.

twinge - a sudden pain or emotional pang.
Commonly used to describe a feeling.
eg I felt a twinge in my left elbow when I straightened my arm.
eg I felt a twinge of sadness when I saw her marry another man.

Could you tell me please if the word 'Tinge' can be used in this way?
'Twinge' is a more natural word in these examples.

'To feel a tinge of envy' or to feel an envious tinge

To feel a tinge of happiness= to feel a happy tinge

To feel a tinge of fear= to feel a fearful tinge

I came across this sentence: The sadness of the scene imparted a somber tinge to the feelings of Mr.Winkle' and I thought if the word 'Tinge' can be preceded by other adjectives? Yes. The word 'tinge' is OK here, I suppose, because Mr. Wnikle's feelings are being described. But it's a little bit unusual.

Clive

Lakshwadeep · Answer

They are not the common way of using tinge with those other adjectives, which are nouns in the original phrases.

Tinge as a verb has the general meaning of to "slightly color", which can mean color in the visible sense (i.e. red, blue, yellow: "a pink tinged flower") but also color in a figurative sense of a slight influence ("tinged with sadness"). Tinge as a noun is similar: either a trace toward some real color ("the sky has a red tinge") or figurative like a slight trace of a feeling ("a tinge of envy"). This last example is what you're asking about, and "tinge" is used as a slight or trace feeling. Using tinge in this way makes more sense with a noun than an adjective:

a tinge of envy = a slight trace of envy
envious tinge = a trace that feels envy (How can the trace itself feel envy?)

However, using tinge makes sense in your sentence:

...imparted a somber tinge to the feelings = placed a sad trace to the feelings = placed a trace of sadness to the feelings

Notice that this repeats what was said earlier in the sentence: the sadness of the scene placed a trace of sadness to the feelings (added sad feelings) of Mr. Winkle = the sadness made Mr. Winkle slightly sad.

Tinge used as a noun often has the form "tinge of X", which comes from the original idea of tinge associated with color ("tinge of blue").

Here are more examples:
http://sentence.yourdictionary.com/tinge

Definitions are from the New Oxford American Dictionary.

Anonymous · Answer

Thank you.

Anonymous · Answer

Thanks.

''Tinge"

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