Colors and materials
Vocabulary
- あかいred
- あおいblue
- みどりgreen
- くろいblack
- しろいwhite
- きいろいyellow
- ちゃいろbrown
- ピンクpink
- むらさきpurple
- オレンジorange
- ふくclothes / clothing
- かわいいcute
い-Adjectives for Colors
Most color words in Japanese are い-adjectives — they end in い and go directly before the noun:
💬 Example: "あかい ふく" → "red clothes"
- あかい ふく → red clothes
- あおい くつ → blue shoes
- くろい かばん → black bag
- しろい シャツ → white shirt
Colors that are NOT い-adjectives
Some colors are nouns and need の before the noun:
- みどりの ふく → green clothes
- ちゃいろの くつ → brown shoes
- ピンクの シャツ → pink shirt
- オレンジの かばん → orange bag
The rule
- If the color ends in い → put it directly before the noun (あかい ふく)
- If it does NOT end in い → add の (みどりの ふく)
💬 Example: "この きいろい ドレスが すきです" → "I like this yellow dress"
Expressions
- あかい ふくが すきですI like red clothes
- なにいろが すきですかWhat color do you like?
- くろい くつを くださいBlack shoes, please
- ほかの いろは ありますかDo you have other colors?
- この いろが いいですI like this color
- かわいいですねIt's cute, isn't it!
Common mistakes
みどり ふくみどりの ふくみどり is a noun-color, you need の before the noun
あかの ふくあかい ふくあかい is an い-adjective — it goes directly before the noun without の
しろ くつしろい くつDon't drop the い — it's しろい (white), not しろ
ピンクい シャツピンクの シャツピンク is a noun-color (katakana), use の not い
くろいの くつくろい くつい-adjectives don't need の — connect directly to the noun
Quick quiz
Question 1 of 5
How do you say “red” in Japanese?
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