means A brilliant, slightly orange-leaning red, often used to suggest sin, passion, or shame (as in 'scarlet woman' or 'scarlet letter').

from From Old French 'escarlate' and medieval Latin 'scarlatum,' which originally named not a color at all but a rich, expensive cloth — a fine wool fabric. Because that prized cloth was so often dyed a vivid red, the name of the fabric slipped over onto the hue itself. The deeper root is likely the Persian 'saqirlat,' a costly dyed textile, hinting at a word that traveled the trade routes westward. So 'scarlet' began as a thing you could wear, and only later became the color you wore it in.