顏色 / 颜色
ngaan⁴ sik¹
The English word color is 顏色 / 颜色 (ngaan⁴ sik¹) in Cantonese.
顏色 / 颜色 is used to refer to a particular set of the visible spectrum. In many compound words or casual descriptions, the single character 色 is used to denote color.
Meaning: particular set of the visible spectrum (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word 顏色 / 颜色 is composed of 顏 (ngaan4), meaning 'face' or 'countenance' and 色 (sik1), meaning 'color' or 'appearance'.
How do you pronounce it?
ngaan⁴ sik¹
Did you know?
- The character 色 is also used to describe 'erotic' or 'lewd' content, making the phrase 'looking at colors' a potential euphemism for watching pornography.
- The term 色盲 for 'color blindness' literally translates to 'color blind', but it is often used colloquially to describe someone who is oblivious to social cues or romantic hints.
- When someone is described as having 'changed color' 變色, it often refers to a sudden shift in mood or a betrayal of character rather than a physical change in skin tone.
Example sentences for Cantonese are not verified yet.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “color” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
