daltónico
/dalˈtoniko/
The Spanish word for color blind is daltónico.
The term describes someone who is unable to distinguish between two or more primary colors.
Meaning: unable to distinguish between two or more primary colors (adj)
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective must agree in gender and number with the person being described. Use daltónico for males, daltónica for females, daltónicos for a group of men or a mixed-gender group and daltónicas for a group consisting only of women.
How do you pronounce it?
/dalˈtoniko/
Did you know?
- The word daltónico is derived from John Dalton, the English chemist who first identified the condition in himself. While English uses the descriptive term 'color blind', Spanish uses an eponymous adjective.
- Unlike the English phrase 'color blind', which can be used as a political term to describe neutrality regarding race, daltónico is almost exclusively used for the physical medical condition in Spanish.
- While English speakers typically say 'I am color blind', Spanish speakers frequently shift the grammar to tener daltonismo, which literally means 'to have color-blindness'.
Examples in context
- No todo es color de rosas para los daltónicos.Not everything is rosy for the color-blind.This sentence uses daltónico in a metaphorical context regarding a rosy outlook.Tatoeba #5022022 by don_ramon, translation #11884530 by Gabe_the_cat
- Soy daltónico.I'm color-blind.This sentence uses daltónico to state a personal condition.Tatoeba #1237312 by Shishir, translation #268615 by Zifre
- No distingo entre el rojo y el verde, porque soy daltónico.I can't tell red and green apart because I'm color-blind.This sentence uses daltónico to explain a specific inability to distinguish red and green.Tatoeba #9687551 by arh, translation #9855498 by DJ_Saidez
- Su hermana padece daltonismo y ve el mundo en tonos de gris.Her sister suffers from color blindness and sees the world in shades of gray.
- La discromatopsia hereditaria es más común en hombres que en mujeres.Hereditary color blindness is more common in men than in women.
- ¡No me pidas que elija la alfombra, soy daltónico!Don't ask me to choose the carpet, I'm color blind!
- Mis amigos son daltónicos.My friends are color blind.
- Ella tiene problemas para distinguir el rojo y el verde debido a su daltonismo.She has trouble distinguishing red and green due to her color blindness.
Example conversation
Daniel and Sofía are looking at a painting together.
- Daniel¿Ves el color azul en este cuadro, Sofía?Do you see the blue color in this painting, Sofía?
- SofíaSí, es muy brillante. ¿Tú no lo ves?Yes, it is very bright. You don't see it?
- DanielNo, es que soy daltónico.No, it is because I am color blind.
- SofíaNo lo sabía, Daniel. Qué interesante.I didn't know that, Daniel. How interesting.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “color blind” translations and entries daltónico, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
