tinc·ture / ˈtingkchər/ • n. 1. a medicine made by dissolving a drug in alcohol: the remedies can be administered in the form of tinctures | a bottle containing tincture of iodine. 2. a slight trace of something: she could not keep a tincture of bitterness out of her voice.3. Heraldry any of the conventional colors (including the metals and stains, and often the furs) used in coats of arms.• v. (be tinctured) be tinged, flavored, or imbued with a slight amount of: Arthur's affability was tinctured with faint sarcasm.

tincture †dye, pigment XIV; hue, colour (spec. in her.) XV; †imparted quality, tinge; †(alch.) supposed spiritual principle XVI; †essential principle of a substance; solution of a medicinal principle XVII. — L. tinctūra dyeing, f. tinct-, pp. stem of tingere dye, TINGE; see -URE.

tincture (tink-cher) n. an alcoholic extract of a drug derived from a plant.