Colour words in Spanish (los colores)
Words for colours in Spanish with notes and colour-related expressions.
Expressions with color (colour, hue, shade)
huevos de color - brown eggs
zapatos de color - brown shoes
so color de - under pretext of
no hay color / no tienen color - there's no comparison / they're streets apart
ese no tiene color - that seems unlikely / that's not on
negro - black, dark, swarthy, gloomy, atrocious, awful
Shades / expressions
negro azabache / negro como boca de lobo - pitch-black, coal-black (jet black / as the inside of a wolf's mouth)
la cosa se pone negra - it's not going well, it looks bad
lo ve todo negro - he's terriby pessimistic about everything
dinero negro - hot money (not declared for tax)
poner negro a uno - to make sb cross, upset sb
azúcar negro - brown sugar
oscuro / tenebroso - dark
oscuro como boca de lobo - as black as pitch (as dark as a wolf's mouth)
sucio - black / dirty (with smoke)
prieto - blackish / dark / swarthy (LAm) / brunette
blanco - white, light, fair, blank, cowardly
Shades / expressions
más blanco que el jazmín - whiter than white, as white as snow
más blanco que el papel - as white as a sheet
poner los ojos en blanco - to roll one's eyes; to look ecstatic
dejar a uno en blanco - to disappoint sb
estoy en blanco - I haven't a clue
pasar la noche en blanco - to have a sleepless night
rojo - red, ruddy, sandy
Shades / expressions
pelirrojo (m), pelirroja (f) - red-haired
bermellón - vermillion
rojo burdeos - maroon, dark red
rojo cereza - cherry-red
rojo teja - brick-red
poner rojo a uno - to make sb blush
ponerse rojo de la ira - to be fighting mad
la atmósfera está al rojo vivo - the atmosphere is electric
rojo de labios - rouge, lipstick
ponerse colorado - to blush
poner colorado a uno - to make sb blush
amarillo - yellow, amber, sensational, gutter
Shades / expressions
gualda - yellow or gold colour
amarillo canario - canary yellow
amarillo mostaza - mustard yellow
amarillo paja - straw colour
sindicato amarillo - trade union which is in league with the bosses
azul - blue, conservative
Shades
celeste - light blue
azul celeste - sky blue
azul de mar/marino - navy blue
azul pavo - peacock blue
azul turquesa - turquoise
azul ultramar - ultramarine
verde - green, unripe, fresh, unseasoned, randy, blue, smutty, dirty, pasture, salad, countryside
Shades / expressions
verde botella - bottle-green
verde lima - lime-green
verde oliva - olive-green
¡están verdes! - sour grapes!
viejo verde - randy/dirty old man
ser verde - to be dirty, smutty, randy
viuda verde - merry widow
está verde - he's very green (ignorant), he doesn't know anything
estar verde de envida - to be green with envy
darse un verde - to eat a lot / one's fill
darse un verde de algo - to have one's fill of sth / to be all sthed out
marrón - brown
castaño - chestnut, brown (hair, eyes, skin)
moreno - brown, tan; tanned; dark-haired; dark, swarthy; coloured;
color café - brown / coffee-coloured
Expressions
muy moreno / muy bronceado - as brown as a berry
ponerse moreno / morenarse / broncearse - to get brown (in the sun)
pan moreno - brown bread
papel de embalar / papel de estraza - brown paper
arroz integral - brown rice
azúcar moreno / negro / terciado - brown sugar
rosa - rose, pink
rosado - pink, rosy, pinkish, rosé (wine)
Expressions
revista rosa - magazine of sentimental stories
verlo todo color de rosa - to see everything through rose-tinted spectacles
color naranja / naranja - orange
Shades
naranja chillón - a loud, garish or lurid orange colour
naranja fuerte - bright orange
gris - grey;
rucio - grey (horse)
Expressions
zona en penumbra / zona gris - grey area
ardilla gris - grey squirrel
anciano / viejo - greybeard
encanecer - to go / turn grey (of hair)
canoso - grey-haired
púrpura - purple
morado - purple (redish purple)
violeta - violet (bluish purple)
lila - lilac (pale purple / violet)
lavanda = lavender
Expressions
ojo morado - black eye
pasarlas moradas - to have a tough time of it
conservador a la violeta - dyed-in-the-wool conservative
Corrections and additions by Pablo Nuñez
Hear colour words in Spanish:
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