How to Say "Black and White" in Japanese

白黒

shirokuro

The English phrase 'black and white' is translated into Japanese as 白黒 (shirokuro).

白黒 can refer to literal colors or the metaphorical concept of something being clear-cut.

Meaning: clear cut (adj)

How do you pronounce it?

shirokuro

The concept of 白黒 is closely tied to the traditional game of Go, where the players use black and white stones. The stark contrast of the stones on the board mirrors the idea of a clear-cut decision.
While English uses 'black and white' to mean 'clear-cut', the Japanese phrase 白黒 is often used with the verb 'to attach' (つける) to mean 'settling' a matter or a dispute.
In Japanese, the order of the characters is strictly 'white' (白) then 'black' (黒), which is the opposite of the English idiom 'black and white'.

その写真は白黒です。
The picture is in black and white.
This sentence shows how to describe a picture as being in black and white using 白黒.
Tatoeba #6849943 by Sonata, translation #1640955 by Spamster
私のレーザープリンターは白黒印刷しかできない。
My laser printer can only do black and white prints.
This sentence demonstrates the use of 白黒 regarding printer output.
Tatoeba #3555740 by arnab, translation #3583321 by mikecash
中国やチベットの山に住んでいる白黒の熊はパンダと呼ばれている。
The black and white bears living in the mountains of China and Tibet are called pandas.
This sentence uses 白黒 to describe the colors of a panda.
Tatoeba #126487 by small_snow, translation #277503 by AlanF_US
彼女は黒と白のワンピースを着ていた
She was wearing a black and white dress.
黒人と白人
Black person and white person
映画の中で、彼らは黒と白のスーツを着ていた
In the movie, they were wearing black and white suits.
7 more sentences on Tatoeba

Yota and Himari are discussing a difficult decision.

陽太 Yota

この問題は白黒つけるのが難しいね。
Kono mondai wa shirokuro tsukeru no ga muzukashii ne.
It's hard to make a clear-cut decision on this issue.
陽葵 Himari

そうだね。正解がない気がするよ。
Sou da ne. Seikai ga nai ki ga suru yo.
I agree. I feel like there is no right answer.
陽太 Yota

でも、そろそろ白黒はっきりさせたいな。
Demo, sorosoro shirokuro hakkiri sasetai na.
But I want to settle this clearly soon.
陽葵 Himari

分かった。明日もう一度話し合おう。
Wakatta. Ashita mou ichido hanashiaou.
I understand. Let's talk about it again tomorrow.

Sources

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