Colours in Chinese 颜色
yánsè
Colour in Chinese is 颜色 (yán sè).
Also searched for as: colors, red, blue, colour names.
What colour is it? 16 essential colours words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
The word for colour in Chinese is 颜色 (yán sè), and most colour words are formed by adding 色 (sè) to a describing character, so red is 红色 (hóng sè) and blue is 蓝色 (lán sè). Colours carry cultural weight too: red is the colour of luck and celebration, which is why it's everywhere at Chinese New Year, while white is traditionally linked to mourning.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 颜色 | yán sè | colour |
| 红色 | hóng sè | red |
| 橙色 | chéng sè | orange |
| 黄色 | huáng sè | yellow |
| 绿色 | lǜ sè | green |
| 蓝色 | lán sè | blue |
| 紫色 | zǐ sè | purple |
| 粉色 | fěn sè | pink |
| 白色 | bái sè | white |
| 黑色 | hēi sè | black |
| 灰色 | huī sè | grey |
| 棕色 | zōng sè | brown |
| 金色 | jīn sè | gold |
| 银色 | yín sè | silver |
| 深 | shēn | dark (colour) |
| 浅 | qiǎn | light (colour) |
Usage tips
- Before a noun, colours usually take 的 (de), as in 红色的裙子 (hóng sè de qún zi), a red skirt, but with single-character colours you can drop both, as in 红裙子 (hóng qún zi).
- 深 (shēn) and 浅 (qiǎn) make shades: 深蓝色 (shēn lán sè) is dark blue and 浅绿色 (qiǎn lǜ sè) is light green.
- 青 (qīng) is an older colour word that can mean green or blue depending on context, as in 青菜 (qīng cài), green leafy vegetables.
Common mistakes
- Pronouncing 绿 as lù; it's lǜ, with the ü sound, so green is 绿色 (lǜ sè).
- Saying 这件衬衫是红, which sounds unfinished; say 这件衬衫是红色的 (zhè jiàn chèn shān shì hóng sè de) or 这件衬衫是红的 (zhè jiàn chèn shān shì hóng de).
Mini dialogue
- A你喜欢什么颜色？Nǐ xǐ huan shén me yán sè?What colour do you like?
- B我喜欢蓝色，特别是浅蓝色。Wǒ xǐ huan lán sè, tè bié shì qiǎn lán sè.I like blue, especially light blue.
- A这件蓝色的毛衣怎么样？Zhè jiàn lán sè de máo yī zěn me yàng?How about this blue jumper?
- B颜色有点儿深，有没有浅一点的？Yán sè yǒu diǎnr shēn, yǒu méi yǒu qiǎn yī diǎn de?The colour's a bit dark. Do you have a lighter one?
Example sentences
- 你喜欢什么颜色？What colour do you like?
- 过年的时候大家喜欢穿红色。People like to wear red at Chinese New Year.
- 这个橙色的包很好看。This orange bag looks great.
- 秋天树叶变成了黄色。In autumn the leaves turn yellow.
- 我想要一件绿色的毛衣。I'd like a green jumper.
- 今天的天空是蓝色的。The sky is blue today.
- 这种紫色很少见。This shade of purple is quite rare.
- 小女孩喜欢粉色的裙子。The little girl likes pink skirts.
- 白色的衬衫容易脏。White shirts get dirty easily.
- 他总是穿黑色的衣服。He always wears black.
- 这件灰色的外套多少钱？How much is this grey coat?
- 我买了一双棕色的皮鞋。I bought a pair of brown leather shoes.
- 她有一头金色的头发。She has golden hair.
- 我的手机是银色的。My phone is silver.
- 有没有颜色深一点的？Do you have one in a darker colour?
- 我喜欢浅蓝色。I like light blue.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Colours speaking island has 8 everyday questions about colours to prepare your own answers to.