From Latin 'pingere' (to paint), from PIE *peig- (to mark/color)—sharing its root with paint, picture, and the Picts.
A substance used for coloring, especially a dry powder that is mixed with a liquid to produce paint or dye.
From Latin 'pigmentum' (a coloring substance, paint), from 'pingere' (to paint, to decorate), from PIE *peig- (to cut, to mark by incision, to color). The same root gives us 'paint,' 'picture,' and 'Pict' (the tattooed/painted people of Scotland). Key roots: *peig- (Proto-Indo-European: "to cut, to mark, to color").