French · Colors

Colors in French

The basic colors in French with pronunciation, translation and an example sentence each, plus the words for light and dark, gold and silver.

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The basic colors and how to describe them

Colors are among the easiest words to practise, because you see them everywhere. Here are the basic colors with their pronunciation and an example sentence each, plus light and dark, gold and silver.

The words

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la couleur[la kulœʁ]colour; color
Quelle est ta couleur préférée ?What is your favourite colour?
blanc[blɑ̃]white
Le nuage est blanc.The cloud is white.
noir[nwaʁ]black
Le chat est noir.The cat is black.
rouge[ʁuʒ]red
La pomme est rouge.The apple is red.
bleu[blø]blue
Le ciel est bleu.The sky is blue.
jaune[ʒon]yellow
Le citron est jaune.The lemon is yellow.
vert[vɛʁ]green
L'herbe est verte.The grass is green.
orange[ɔʁɑ̃ʒ]orange
Elle porte un pull orange.She is wearing an orange jumper.
rose[ʁoz]pink
Le ruban est rose.The ribbon is pink.
violet[vjɔlɛ]purple; violet
Elle a une robe violette.She has a purple dress.
marron[maʁɔ̃]brown
J'ai des chaussures marron.I have brown shoes.
brun[bʁœ̃]brown (hair, eyes)
Il a les cheveux bruns.He has brown hair.
gris[ɡʁi]grey; gray
Le ciel est gris aujourd'hui.The sky is grey today.
beige[bɛʒ]beige
Il porte un pantalon beige.He is wearing beige trousers.
doré[dɔʁe]golden; gold
Le cadre du miroir est doré.The mirror frame is golden.
argenté[aʁʒɑ̃te]silver
Ma voiture est argentée.My car is silver.
clair[klɛʁ]light (colour)
Elle porte une chemise bleu clair.She is wearing a light blue shirt.
foncé[fɔ̃se]dark (colour)
J'aime le vert foncé.I like dark green.
vif[vif]bright (colour)
Les enfants aiment les couleurs vives.Children like bright colours.

Learn these words with flashcards

Vert, verte, verts

French colors usually come after the noun and agree with it: une voiture verte, des voitures vertes. Colors named after things, such as orange and marron, do not change: des chaussures marron.

Two words together do not change either: des yeux bleu clair. As nouns colors are masculine: le rouge.

Questions about these words

Do colors change with the noun?: In English they never do. In Spanish, German and French most of them change their ending with the noun, and a few named after a fruit or a flower stay the same. The note above gives the rule for this language.
How do I practise colors?: Name the colors of what you see on the way to work or school, aloud. Then add a noun: a red car, a green door. That one step teaches you the agreement as well.

Words by topic

Other languages: Colors in Spanish Colors in German