ground color

Also called ground coat. a primary coat of paint; priming; base coat.

the background color, as of a painting or decoration.

Origin of ground color

First recorded in 1605–15

This butterfly is smaller than the Monarch, and the ground-color of the wings is a livid brown.

The Butterfly Book |William Jacob Holland
The female has the ground-color of the upper side yellow, shaded outwardly with fulvous.

The Butterfly Book |William Jacob Holland
The ground-color of the wings on the under side is as above, but somewhat paler.

The Butterfly Book |William Jacob Holland
Care must be taken in blending the hearts after pencilling, or the graining-color will lift off and show the ground-color.

Practical Graining |William E. (William Edmund) Wall

In this the blue is the ground-color, and in it the decoration, consisting of sprigs of bud and blossom, is reserved.

The Ceramic Art |Jennie J. Young