More Colour Me Purple: Purple Puzzlers Quiz

Answer: violet

Though a layperson, such as myself, might consider violet a simple shade of purple, the truth is rather more complex. Suffice it to say that both lie between red and blue on an artist's colour wheel, with violet leaning more towards the blue.

The pretty, sweet smelling flowers called violets share their name with the colour.

Answer: plum

"...look uP LUMber supply..."

Plum is a dark shade of purple that approximates the colour of the fruit of the genus Prunus.

Answer: amethyst

The shade of the colour associated with February's birthstone, the amethyst, is quite pale and definitely pretty.

The use of the names of characters from the TV show "NCIS: Los Angeles" is purely coincidental.

Answer: fandango

Fan + Dan + go = Fandango

Fandango, a colour term first used in the 1920s, is close to fuchsia in the range of purple shades, though perhaps almost leaning to pink.

Dan Rather is an American journalist and TV newsman of long standing.

Answer: Lilac

"...LIL A Colourful..."

As a shade of purple, lilac is one of the palest, though lilac itself has more than one shade with names like "bright lilac" and "French lilac".

The pretty flowering plant Syringa vulgaris (common lilac) likewise has more than one shade of flower, from a deep purple tone down through what we think of as lilac-coloured all the way to white.

(I really do have a lilac plant by my front door!)

Answer: lavender

Lavender is yet another pale shade of purple with botanical associations.

One of the commercial uses of lavender is the production of lavender oil, which can be used as an anti-inflammatory, amongst other things. Sweet-smelling lavender also makes a pleasant addition to one's garden.

Answer: mauve

"...MAU VEra and..."

Mauve is the French word for the mallow flower, which is a pretty pale purple and gives this shade its name.

"Di-di mau" means "hurry up" in the version of the Vietnamese language used by American soldiers during the conflict in that country, and possibly also by the French during the time the country was part of French Indochina.

Answer: Tyrian

Tyrone minus one plus Ian = Tyrian

Tyrian purple is also known as Imperial purple, due to the association with royalty dating from ancient times. Tyrian derives from the city of Tyre where the purple pigment was once made.

Tyrone Power was a star in the 1930s, 40s, and 50s, in such movies as "Jesse James" (1939) and "Witness for the Prosecution" (1957). Ian McKellen appeared in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy (2001-2003) as Gandalf.

Answer: orchid

Orchid was first used as a name for a colour in the early years of the twentieth century, and is described as a bright purple. The idea is that the colour approximates the shade of some varieties of the flowers known as orchids.

The roc was a giant mythical bird, found in fairy tales and folklore of the Middle East.

Answer: purple

"...LumPUR PLEase..."

So, there we are, back to purple, the colour we have been discussing all along.

The lock-up suits reference was found in a 2017 article, referring to prisoners awaiting trial in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, being given such attire, in purple, to wear to court (similar to the orange jumpsuits sometimes seen on American TV).