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There comes a moment in every young crayon user’s life when they graduate from the 8-count (or 16-count, perhaps) box to the treasure trove of 64 glorious sticks of differently colored wax, when they discover that there isn’t just one brown or orange or blue, that when it comes to colors, the sky’s the limit! Such a moment is often the first encounter people have with the word cerulean, a word that slips sibilantly off the tongue like a balmy ocean breeze. Like azure, cerulean describes things whose blue color resembles that of a clear sky; it’s often used in literature (especially travel writing) to paint an enticing image of an even more enticing vista, as in “the cerulean waters of a tropical lagoon.” While azure is thought to hail from the Persian word lāzhuward, with the same meaning, cerulean comes from the Latin adjective caeruleus, meaning “dark blue.” That word most likely comes from caelum, meaning “sky.”
Examples of cerulean in a Sentence
Alfredo Toriello, Vanity Fair, 6 Feb. 2026
The 77 rooms and four oceanfront bungalows—with interiors by Joseph Dirand—highlight clean, Art Deco–inspired lines around the floor-to-ceiling windows framing the cerulean water.
—Devorah Lev-Tov, Robb Report, 5 Feb. 2026
Quiet paths dotted with white and yellow blossoms and scarlet jungle flames lead to powdery beaches hugged by cerulean waters.
—Natasha Amar, Forbes.com, 28 Jan. 2026
This stunning manicure features shades of evergreen, Kelly green, denim, baby blue, and cerulean.
—Kara Jillian Brown, InStyle, 20 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for cerulean
Cite this Entry
“Cerulean.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cerulean. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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cerulean
adjective
