German Colours Vocabulary
This set covers the basic German colour words like blau, grün, and rot, then pushes into shades and descriptive words like scharlachrot, pechschwarz, and grell. One thing to note early: colour adjectives like rot or blau don't take an ending when they stand alone or after "sein" (der Apfel ist rot), but they do change when placed before a noun (der rote Apfel) - English speakers often forget this agreement and leave the adjective flat in both cases.
Learn these 21 words
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All 21 words
- blauA1
blue
Der Himmel ist heute sehr blau. — The sky is very blue today.
- braunA1
brown
Ihre Augen sind dunkelbraun. — Her eyes are dark brown.
- gelbA1
yellow
Die Banane ist noch nicht gelb. — The banana is not yellow yet.
- grauA1
grey
Der Himmel ist heute grau. — The sky is grey today.
- grünA1
green
Das Gras im Park ist grün. — The grass in the park is green.
- rosaA1
pink
Sie trägt ein rosa Kleid. — She is wearing a pink dress.
- rotA1
red
Die Rose ist wunderschön rot. — The rose is beautifully red.
- schwarzA1
black
Er fährt ein schwarzes Auto. — He drives a black car.
- weißA1
white
Der Schnee ist ganz weiß. — The snow is completely white.
- buntA2
colorful
Anna trägt gern bunte Kleider. — Anna likes to wear colorful dresses.
plural: die Farben
color
Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? — What is your favorite color?
- violettA2
violet
Die Blume blüht in violett. — The flower blooms in violet.
- türkisB1
turquoise
Das Meer schimmert türkis in der Sonne. — The sea shimmers turquoise in the sun.
plural: die Farben
colour
Die Farbe des Himmels ist blau. — The colour of the sky is blue.
plural: die Färbungen
coloring / coloration / tint / hue
Die Färbung des Vogels ist wunderschön blau. — The coloring of the bird is beautifully blue.
- grellB2
glaring / flashy / lurid
Die grell leuchtenden Farben waren unangenehm. — The glaring bright colors were unpleasant.
scarlet
Das scharlachrote Kleid fällt auf. — The scarlet dress stands out.
plural: die Schattierungen
shade / tint / hue
Die Schattierung des Bildes ist sehr schön. — The shade of the painting is very beautiful.
plural: die Ocker
ocher = an earthy pigment that is yellow to brown to red
Der Ocker verleiht dem Boden eine warme Färbung. — The ocher gives the soil a warm coloring.
pitch black
Die pechschwarze Nacht ließ kein Licht hindurch. — The pitch black night let no light through.
vermilion / cinnabar
Der Künstler verwendete leuchtendes Zinnober für die Malerei. — The artist used brilliant vermilion for the painting.
How to learn this set
Notice that most compound shades in this list are built by fusing a colour onto another word: scharlachrot (scarlet + red) and pechschwarz (pitch + black) both follow the pattern [intensifier/material] + [base colour]. Once you know rot and schwarz, you can guess the meaning of similar compounds you haven't seen yet by breaking them into their two halves. Also drill lila and rosa separately from the rest: unlike rot or blau, these two never take adjective endings at all, even before a noun (die rosa Bluse, not "rosane"), because they derive from foreign nouns. For die Farbe versus die Färbung, practice them in pairs: Farbe is the color itself, Färbung is the act or result of coloring something (like a subtle tint or a dye job), so they're related but not interchangeable.
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Frequently asked questions
Is Farbe masculine or feminine in German?
Farbe is feminine: die Farbe, die Farben in the plural. All the basic colour nouns in this set that end in -e follow the same feminine pattern, including die Färbung and die Schattierung.
Why don't rosa and lila change their endings?
Rosa and lila are borrowed from French and Latin roots (rose, lilac) and never adapted to standard German adjective endings, so they stay fixed: ein rosa Kleid, die lila Wand, regardless of gender or case.
What's the difference between Farbe and Färbung?
Farbe means the colour itself, like the blue of the sky. Färbung refers to a specific tint, hue, or the process of dyeing something, so you'd use it for a subtle colour variation rather than the plain colour word.
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