Spanish colors

Colors are a fundamental part of any language as they allow you to express yourself, describe objects and places and everything around you. That is why, when you are starting to learn Spanish from scratch, colors are one of the first vocabulary lessons to be taught.

Everything is full of colors: clothes, art, decoration, books, objects... Practically any animate or inanimate being has color and in your Spanish course you can't miss this lesson. Describe anything you set your mind to once you have learned the Spanish colors.

Read this article in Spanish if you prefer.

Spanish colors list

Before differentiating colors according to their category on the color wheel, this complete list of colors in Spanish will help you learn them:

• Azul - Blue
• Amarillo - Yellow
• Rojo - Red
• Rosa - Pink
• Naranja - Orange
• Verde - Green
• Violeta - Violet
• Morado - Purple
• Turquesa - Turquoise
• Marrón - Brown
• Negro - Black
• Blanco - White
• Gris - Gray
• Plateado - Silver
• Dorado - Gold
• Fucsia - Fuchsia
• Lila - Lilac
• Beige
• Azul celeste - Light Blue
• Caqui - Khaki

Although there are many more colors and subtonalities of each color, below, you will be able to distinguish them in the chromatic circle and differentiate them by their category.

Spanish color wheel

The Spanish color wheel or chromatic circle is an ordered representation of colors according to their shades in a circular shape. It represents the primary colors and their derivatives.

It is a fundamental tool for composing and creating designs, but for you, as a student of Spanish, it will help you to learn the different shades of colors and names.

Primary colors are those that cannot be obtained from a mixture of colors. There are three: amarillo, magenta, and cian (yellow, red, and blue). While secondary colors are those that come from the mixture of the primary colors, they are violeta, naranja, and verde (violet, orange, and green).

Also, there are the complementary colors, those that are opposite to the primary colors in the chromatic circle. For each primary color there is a complementary one that is formed by a primary and a secondary one:

• Rojo and verde (red and green)
• Amarillo and violeta (yellow and violet)
• Azul and naranja (blue and orange)

In addition, in the Spanish color wheel there are the warm and cold colors. The warm colors are rojo, naranja, and amarillo (red, orange, and yellow); while the cool colors are verde, azul, and violeta (green, blue, and violet).

Are black and white not in the Spanish color wheel? Yes, these two colors are not part of the color wheel. These two colors are neutral, like gray, so they do not appear in the color wheel because they lack color.

Below, you will find examples of sentences with different Spanish colors that can help you learn how to use them, their order and their gender and number:

• El profesor lleva una chaqueta azul oscuro y un maletín marrón (The teacher is wearing a dark blue jacket and a brown briefcase)
• ¿Sabes dónde he dejado mi bufanda rosa? (Do you know where I left my pink scarf?)
• Mi taza preferida es de color rojo (My favorite mug is red)
• El amarillo es el color preferido de mi tía (Yellow is my aunt's favorite color)
• La mesa dorada está junto al sofá morado (The golden table is next to the purple sofa)
• La botella verde tiene un dibujo de una piña amarilla (The green bottle has a drawing of a yellow pineapple)
• El cielo azul está lleno de nubes grises (The blue sky is filled with gray clouds)
• El coche de mi primo es naranja, pero el techo y los retrovisores son negros (My cousin's car is orange, but the roof and the mirrors are black)
• El bolso blanco tiene un toque lila que me encanta (The white bag has a lilac touch that I love)
• La portada de ese libro es roja con las páginas pintadas de azul (The cover of that book is red with blue painted pages)

What colors would you add to this list? Which is your favorite? Ask your friends and family in Spanish what their favorite color is and practice the vocabulary you have learned. The colors allow you to describe objects, art, people, clothes, and much more. DonQuijote Spanish School encourages you to improve your level, increase your vocabulary and practice the language!