amber

The word “amber” means a hard, translucent, yellow-to-brown fossilized tree resin, used in jewellery and sometimes containing preserved insects. In plain terms, a gold-brown fossil resin, its colour, or the yellow traffic light.

“Amber” is pronounced AM-buh (/ˈæm.bəː/ in IPA).

Here is “amber” used in a sentence: “The museum displayed a piece of amber with a prehistoric fly trapped inside.”

Words with a similar meaning to “amber” include ambergris.

The opposite of “amber” — its antonyms — are red and green.

Depending on how it is used, “amber” can be a noun and an adjective.

The word “amber” comes from Old French. From Old French ambre, from Arabic anbar ("ambergris") — originally referring to a waxy whale product before the name shifted to the fossil resin.

“Amber” is a fairly common word in modern English.

When the amber light shows, drivers should stop if it is safe to do so, because it signals that the light is about to turn red. It is a warning to prepare to stop, not a cue to speed up. You should only continue through the junction if stopping suddenly would be unsafe.

As colours, amber is a deeper, more orange-tinged shade, while yellow is brighter and lighter. On traffic signals, British English calls the middle light "amber," whereas American English usually calls the same light "yellow." They point to the same signal but use different names.

Amber is neither a true gemstone nor a mineral stone; it is hardened, fossilised tree resin. It is prized in jewellery for its warm colour and can sometimes contain insects that were trapped long ago. Because it comes from living trees, it is classed as an organic material rather than a rock.