Colors

1. أحمر

   Aḥmar

   Red

   Usage

   Basic color adjective. Many Arabic primary color adjectives follow the أَفْعَل (afʿal) morphological pattern.

   Grammar Note

   Arabic color adjectives have grammatical gender. أحمر (aḥmar) is masculine; the feminine is حمراء (ḥamrāʾ). Plural: حُمر (ḥumr). The أَفْعَل (afʿal) pattern is the typical form for basic colors.

2. برتقالي

   Burtuqālī

   Orange

   Usage

   Meaning "Portuguese-colored". Derived from برتقال (burtuqāl, orange fruit), and now fully established as a color name.

   Grammar Note

   برتقالي is a nisba adjective (suffix -ī meaning "related to/from"), literally "of Portugal." Unlike primary colors, it does not follow the أَفْعَل pattern but derives from the fruit name.

3. أصفر

   Aṣfar

   Yellow

   Usage

   Basic adjective for yellow. The feminine form is صفراء (ṣafrāʾ).

   Grammar Note

   أصفر (aṣfar) follows the أَفْعَل pattern. Its feminine is صفراء (ṣafrāʾ), following the أَفْعَلاء pattern. This is the regular feminine for Arabic color adjectives.

4. أخضر

   Akhḍar

   Green

   Usage

   Green holds special significance in Islam. Feminine: خضراء (khaḍrāʾ). The phrase الأرض الخضراء (green land) is also a common expression.

   Grammar Note

   أخضر (akhḍar) follows the أَفْعَل pattern; root خ-ض-ر (kh-ḍ-r) means "green/fresh." Feminine خضراء (khaḍrāʾ) follows the أَفْعَلاء pattern.

5. أزرق داكن

   Azraq Dākin

   Dark blue / Navy

   Usage

   Arabic uses one word for blue (أزرق azraq) and distinguishes shades with داكن (dākin, dark) or فاتح (fātiḥ, light).

   Grammar Note

   أزرق (azraq) follows the أَفْعَل pattern. داكن (dākin) is a post-positive adjective meaning "dark". The feminine is زرقاء داكنة (zarqāʾ dākinah).

6. أزرق فاتح

   Azraq Fātiḥ

   Sky blue

   Usage

   Describes the bright blue of sky or sea. فاتح (fātiḥ) means "opening / light (in shade)".

   Grammar Note

   فاتح (fātiḥ) is the active participle of root ف-ت-ح (to open), repurposed to mean "light in shade." It follows the color word to indicate a lighter shade.

7. بنفسجي

   Banafasajī

   Purple

   Usage

   Meaning "of the violet flower." Derived from بنفسج (banafasaj), the violet flower.

   Grammar Note

   بنفسجي is a nisba adjective (suffix -ī) from the flower name بنفسج (banafasaj, violet). Unlike primary colors, it does not follow the أَفْعَل pattern but derives from a plant name.

8. وردي

   Wardī

   Pink

   Usage

   Meaning "rose-colored." Derived from ورد (ward), the rose flower.

   Grammar Note

   وردي is a nisba adjective from ورد (ward, rose). The rose's color became the established term for pink — a common pattern where flower names give rise to color words.

9. بني

   Bunnī

   Brown

   Usage

   The brown of coffee beans or earth. بُنّ (bunn) means coffee beans, from which this color derives.

   Grammar Note

   بني is a nisba adjective from بُنّ (bunn, coffee beans), literally "coffee-colored." The rich brown of coffee beans became the standard Arabic word for brown.

10. أبيض

    Abyaḍ

    White

    Usage

    The Arabic adjective for white. Feminine: بيضاء (bayḍāʾ). "The White Sea" (البحر الأبيض) is the Arabic name for the Mediterranean.

    Grammar Note

    أبيض (abyaḍ) follows the أَفْعَل pattern. Root ب-ي-ض (b-y-ḍ) is related to بيضة (bayḍah, egg), both conveying whiteness or brightness.

11. أسود

    Aswad

    Black

    Usage

    The Arabic adjective for black. Feminine: سوداء (sawdāʾ). "The Black Stone" (الحجر الأسود) is the name of the sacred stone at the Kaaba in Mecca.

    Grammar Note

    أسود (aswad) follows the أَفْعَل pattern; root س-و-د (s-w-d) means "black/dark." The country name Sudan (السودان) also derives from this root, meaning "land of the black (people)."

12. رمادي

    Ramādī

    Gray

    Usage

    Meaning "the color of ash." رماد (ramād) means ash/cinders, giving rise to this color name.

    Grammar Note

    رمادي is a nisba adjective (suffix -ī) from رماد (ramād, ash). The construction means "belonging to/resembling ash" rather than a direct adjectival form.

13. أزرق

    Azraq

    Blue

    Usage

    Plain blue with no shade specified. Arabic adds a modifier for the shades: أزرق داكن for navy and أزرق فاتح for light blue.

    Grammar Note

    أزرق (azraq) follows the أَفْعَل pattern used for the basic colours; the feminine is زرقاء (zarqāʾ) and the plural زرق (zurq), inflecting exactly like أحمر (red), أصفر (yellow), أخضر (green), أبيض (white) and أسود (black).

Browse all TravelPhrases languages