When you learn the colors in Spanish, you add dimension and descriptive detail to your vocabulary. Plus, learning just a few Spanish colors can help you communicate and understand the language better, an excellent starting point for how to learn Spanish.
Learn all the colors in Spanish on the chart below, listed in alphabetical order on the Spanish side. You can practice the words online or print out the list and take it with you.
When you’re ready for more, check out the word collections on our Spanish vocabulary page.
Unlike English, colors in Spanish follow a few different grammatical rules. After the Spanish colors list, keep reading for the basics of using colors in Spanish with ease (and correctly).
Spanish, like many languages spoken throughout the world, has something called adjective-noun agreement. All nouns have a gender (masculine or feminine) as well as a number form (singular or plural). Any adjective describing that noun must agree with those forms. As an adjective, a color in Spanish must agree with the noun that it describes.
Let’s look at how adjective-noun agreement works with amarillo (yellow) from the Spanish colors list above.
You already know that in English, the adjective precedes the noun, like blue sky or red rose. But, in Spanish, you can play around with the word order. Generally speaking, Spanish speakers place the adjective AFTER the noun, so you say the colors in Spanish after the noun. In other words, the noun first then the color in Spanish. So, instead of saying “blue sky,” you would say “cielo azul” (sky blue).
Let’s take a look at how to say a few phrases from the Spanish colors list, using the correct word order:
Unlike in English, Spanish has two forms of “to be” verbs: ser and estar. In general, ser is used to describe something permanent that won’t change. Estar generally describes things that will change.
Let’s compare how to use colors in Spanish with ser and estar to give you a better idea:
Notice how in the previous examples, you use ser for items with a fixed color, and estar for items that change color. For example, when describing a person’s natural eye color, which doesn’t change, the correct verb is ser. When describing red eyes, a temporary condition that will change when the eye is no longer irritated, the correct verb is estar.
Knowing colors can help get your message across, especially in everyday situations like ordering food in a restaurant, shopping, or small talk. Memorize this basic Spanish colors list with common items to “add color” to your vocabulary:
Speak to a native online Spanish tutor and ask.