English to French Colors
When describing objects in French, you might want to use some color words. Unfortunately, that can be mighty hard if you don't know the proper translation for the color you're looking to speak of. This page is here to solve this problem.
See below for the English to French translations of 70 color words and phrases. By scrolling down, you'll first find a list of color related words. Then after that, you'll find two lists of color words - one with your more standard colors, then the next with more descriptive words.
After that, you'll find a series of translated color-related sentences to help you see how the colors may be used in conversation.
English to French Color Words and Phrases:
Words in bold added during the last update. You can also view this list of colors from French to English.
Quick Links:
English to French Color-Related Words
Basic Colors from English to French
Descriptive Colors from English to French
English to French Sentences with Colors
English to French Color-Related Words
Here are some words related to colors, but aren't actual colors to get you started.
Color ➔ Couleur
The colors ➔ Les couleurs
Multi-colored ➔ Multicolore
Light ➔ Clair
Bright ➔ Vif
Dark ➔ Foncé
Dull ➔ Terne
Fluorescent ➔ Fluo
Basic Colors from English to French
This list contains 32 of your more standard colors translated from English to French.
Amethyst ➔ Améthyste
Beige ➔ Beige
Black ➔ Noir
Blue ➔ Bleu
Brown ➔ Brun
Brown ➔ Marron
Chartreuse ➔ Chartreuse (green / yellow mix)
Crimson ➔ Cramoisi
Cyan ➔ Vert d'eau
Eggplant ➔ Aubergine (dark purple)
Gold ➔ Doré
Gold ➔ Or
Gray / Grey ➔ Gris
Green ➔ Vert
Ivory ➔ Ivoire
Lavender ➔ Lavande
Lilac ➔ Lilas
Maroon ➔ Bordeaux
Orange ➔ Orange
Peach ➔ Pêche
Periwinkle ➔ Pervenche
Pink ➔ Rose
Purple ➔ Pourpre
Purple ➔ Violet
Red ➔ Rouge
Rust ➔ Rouille
Sepia ➔ Sépia
Silver ➔ Argent
Tan ➔ Tan
Teal ➔ Bleu sarcelle
Teal ➔ Sarcelle
White ➔ Blanc
Yellow ➔ Jaune
Descriptive Colors from English to French
For times the basic colors just won't do, here's 19 more descriptive colors.
Brick red ➔ Rouge brique
Dark blue ➔ Bleu foncé
Dark gray / Dark grey ➔ Gris foncé
Dark green ➔ Vert foncé
Emerald green ➔ Vert émeraude
Forest green ➔ Vert forêt
Golden yellow ➔ Jaune d'or
Lemon yellow ➔ Jaune citron
Light blue ➔ Bleu clair
Light gray / Light grey ➔ Gris clair
Light green ➔ Vert clair
Lime green ➔ Vert citron
Navy blue ➔ Bleu marine
Off white ➔ Blanc cassé
Royal blue ➔ Bleu roi
Sage green ➔ Vert sauge
Sea green ➔ Vert marin
Sky blue ➔ Bleu ciel
Tan ➔ Brun clair
English to French Sentences with Colors
Wondering how to use these colors in sentences? Here's some sentences and short phrases to help you out.
A lime ➔ Un citron vert (lit. a green lemon)
Black hair ➔ Les cheveux noirs
Brown eyes ➔ Des yeux marrons
Brown hair ➔ Les cheveux bruns
My favorite color is green. ➔ Ma couleur préférée est le vert.
The grass is green. ➔ L'herbe est verte.
The red carpet ➔ Le tapis rouge
The snow is white. ➔ La neige est blanche.
The sun is yellow. ➔ Le soleil est jaune.
White as a sheet ➔ Blanc comme un linge
*English to French colors last updated: January 13, 2025.
Next Up
French Country Names: Learn how to say country names and nationalities in French.
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French, German, Greek, Japanese, Korean, Romanian, Spanish, and Urdu.
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