Development of colorimetric sensors has emerged as an attractive strategy for cyanide detection owing to their unique advantages, including simple visual detection and economical nature. In this work, anthraquinone derivatives (3a-d) have been easily prepared via nucleophilic substitution of 1-chloro anthraquinone with substituted phenylacetonitriles, with only nitro-substituted anthraquinone 3d displaying colorimetric sensor capabilities. The sensor showed good selectivity, reversibility and reusability toward cyanide detection, as well as efficient naked-eye color change from colorless to blue-purple in a neutral aqueous medium. The deprotonation mechanism of CH was investigated by NMR spectroscopy and supported by DFT calculations. Furthermore, the sensor 3d was successfully loaded onto test strips as a convenient and efficient solid-state sensor for cyanide detection. It was utilized for cyanide detection in cassava flour and bitter almonds food samples, as well as displaying excellent performance in real-world water samples.