Today, you’ll not only master the 15 most commonly used colors in Portuguese, but also learn 21 Brazilian Portuguese idiomatic expressions with colors that will make your conversations as vivid as a painting. Let’s dive into this colorful journey where grammar meets creativity, and where you’ll discover how to use colors to enrich your Portuguese vocabulary and expressions.
This lesson is organized in three parts:
- 15 most commonly used colors in Portuguese
- Some needed grammar so you can use the colors correctly and be happy with your Portuguese 🙂
- Idiomatic expressions with the colors to make your conversations more natural and expressive 🇧🇷
As Cores: 15 Colors in Portuguese
You are probably wondering if I made a typo when I used the feminine article “a” with the word “cores” above. Nope. Cor is a feminine noun. To form the plural, add “es” at the end:
a cor = color
as cores = colors
Colors are so powerful – they can evoke emotions, set moods, and tell stories. I absolutely love the song Esquadros by Adriana Calcanhotto that beautifully captures this sentiment. Here’s a lovely excerpt from the lyrics:
Eu ando pelo mundo
Prestando atenção em cores
Que eu não sei o nome
Cores de Almodóvar
Cores de Frida Kahlo
Cores!
So, here are 15 colors in Portuguese. Listen to the pronunciation:
Note: Prateado is the color silver, and prata means silver (the metal).
Claro & Escuro
In Portuguese, you can modify the basic colors to indicate lighter or darker shades by adding claro/a (light) or escuro/a (dark) to the color. Here are some examples:
- Azul claro = Light blue
- Eu gosto de azul claro. = I like light blue.
- Verde escuro = Dark green
- A parede da sala é pintada de verde escuro. = The living room wall is painted dark green.
These terms help you describe colors more precisely, adding depth to your vocabulary.
Fun Fact: Cultural Significance of Colors in Brazil
In Brazil, colors are rich with cultural significance and are linked to various emotions and events. For instance, white is traditionally worn during New Year’s Eve as it symbolizes peace and renewal. By the way, I have a post about Brazilian New Year’s superstitions, including the color of our underwear. Check it out here.
Green, the color of hope, is also prominently featured in the Brazilian flag, representing the country’s lush landscapes and vibrant spirit.
Yellow, another key color in the flag, symbolizes the wealth of Brazil’s resources.
Speaking of the Brazilian flag, we always say the colors in this order: verde, amarelo, azul e branco.
Just a Bit of Grammar to Help You Speak Correctly 💪🏼
Colors in Portuguese vary in gender and number
Colors are used as adjectives. Therefore, in Portuguese, most of the colors agree in gender and number with the noun they describe.
That means that we have a masculine and a feminine form for most of the colors and also their singular and plural versions.
For example:
- Eu tenho um carro branco. = I have a white car.
- Eu tenho uma camiseta branca. = I have a white t-shirt.
- Gosto de roupas brancas. = I like white clothes.
When you are talking about a color (and not describing an object), use the masculine, singular version. For example:
- Não gosto de amarelo. = I don’t like yellow.
- Adoro vermelho. = I love red.
However, not all the colors have a feminine and masculine version. The general rules are below.
3 Rules to Help You Along the Way
1) Colors that have a masculine and feminine version end in “o” in the masculine and end in “a” in the feminine.
For example:
- Meu casaco vermelho combina com minha bolsa vermelha. = My red coat matches my red purse.
2) Colors that end in a letter other than “a” or “o” have only one form that applies to both genders.
For example:
- Comprei uma saia azul para combinar com o meu casaco azul. = I got a blue skirt to match my blue coat.
- O carro de João é verde. A bicicleta dele também é verde. = João’s car is green. His bicycle is also green.
3) Some colors have only one form for both masculine and feminine and they don’t have a plural form. This happens when the word is originally a noun (a thing, an object in simple terms), and not an adjective/color.
For example:
🌷 Rosa is originally a noun; it means rose. So when we use it as an adjective (as a color), it doesn’t vary in any way.
- Aninha adora vestidos e sapatos rosa. = Aninha loves pink dresses and shoes.
🍊 Laranja = orange (the fruit)
- Eu tenho dois gatos laranja. = I have two orange cats.
Cinza = ash
- Luciana adora gatos cinza. = Luciana loves gray cats.
21 Brazilian Portuguese Idiomatic Expressions with Colors
The expression in parenthesis is the literal translation of the Brazilian Portuguese idiom. It may not make sense in English, but I thought you might be curious to know the literal translation.
1) Tudo azul (all blue) = all is well
- Oi! Tudo azul? = Hi! Is everything well?
The expression “Tudo azul?” is not as common as some other greetings, such as “Tudo bem?“. As an affirmation, it means “all is well”. There is a song by Lulu Santos called Tudo Azul.
2) Ter sangue azul (to have blue blood) = to be of noble or aristocratic descent
- Ele sempre se comportou como se tivesse sangue azul, com uma atitude de superioridade. = He always behaved as if she had blue blood, with an attitude of superiority.
3) Ficar roxo/a de raiva (to get purple with anger) = to get very angry
- Joana ficou roxa de raiva com o seu comentário. = Joana got very angry at your comment.
4) Ficar vermelho/a (to turn red) = to feel embarrassed
- Ana fica vermelha quando recebe um elogio. = Ana feels embarrassed when she receives praise.
5) Estar no vermelho (to be in the red) = to be in debt
- Ninguém gosta de estar no vermelho. = No one likes to be in the red.
6) Dar sinal vermelho (to give a red signal) = to forbid or stop something
- O chefe deu sinal vermelho para o novo projeto. = The boss stopped the new project.
7) Ver a vida cor-de-rosa (to see life in pink) = to see life through rose-colored glasses, to be overly optimistic
- Ela sempre vê a vida cor-de-rosa, mesmo em tempos difíceis. = She always sees life through rose-colored glasses, even in tough times.
8) Receber o sinal verde (to get the green light) = to get/have permission to go ahead with something
- Finalmente recebi o sinal verde para contratar o novo funcionário. = I finally got the green light to hire the new employee.
9) Estar verde de fome (to be green with hunger) = to be starving
- Estou verde de fome! = I’m starving!
10) Ficar verde de inveja (to turn green with envy) = to feel very envious
- Ela ficou verde de inveja quando viu o carro novo da vizinha. = She was green with envy when she saw her neighbor’s new car.
11) Tremer como vara verde (to shake like a green stick) = to tremble with fear or nervousness, to shake like a leaf
- Ele estava tão nervoso antes da entrevista que estava tremendo como vara verde. = He was so nervous before the interview that he was shaking like a leaf.
12) Dar carta branca (to give a white card) = to give free rein
- Milena me deu carta branca para criar o website dela. = Milena gave me free rein to create her website.
13) Ficar branco/a como papel (to turn as white as paper) = to be very scared or shocked
- Ele ficou branco como papel quando viu o acidente. = He turned as white as a sheet when he saw the accident.
14) Passar em branco (to pass in white) = to go unnoticed
- Estamos tristes com o falecimento de Tio Fabrício, mas não podemos deixar o aniversário de Daniel passar em branco. = We are saddened by Uncle Fabrício’s passing, but we can’t let Daniel’s birthday go unnoticed.
15) Dar um branco (to give a white) = to draw a blank, to forget something suddenly
- Eu estava apresentando o projeto quando, de repente, me deu um branco e não consegui lembrar o que vinha a seguir. = I was presenting the project when, suddenly, I drew a blank and couldn’t remember what came next.
16) Crime de colarinho branco (white-collar crime) = financial crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of their occupation
- Ele foi preso por cometer um crime de colarinho branco, envolvendo fraude fiscal e lavagem de dinheiro. = He was arrested for committing a white-collar crime, involving tax fraud and money laundering.
17) Ficar bege (to turn beige) = to be astonished, to be shocked, or to be perplexed
- Quando me contaram a novidade, eu fiquei bege! = When they told me the news, I was shocked!
18) Amarelar (to turn yellow) = to chicken out, to lose courage or become afraid to do something
- Ele ia pular de paraquedas, mas, no último instante, ele amarelou. = He was going to do the parachute jump, but at the last minute, he chickened out.
19) Dar uma desculpa amarela (to give a yellow excuse) = to give a lame excuse
- Não me dê uma desculpa amarela para não me ajudar a limpar a casa! = Don’t give me a lame excuse to avoid helping me clean the house!
20) Dar um sorriso amarelo ( to give a yellow smile) = to force a smile
- Quando mencionaram o erro que ele cometeu, ele deu um sorriso amarelo, tentando disfarçar o constrangimento. = When they mentioned the mistake he made, he forced a smile, trying to hide his embarrassment.
21) Ser um laranja (to be an orange) = to be a frontman or a stooge (someone used to hide the true identity of the person committing fraud)
- Ele estava sendo usado como laranja em um esquema de lavagem de dinheiro. = He was being used as a frontman in a money laundering scheme.
E aí, qual é a sua cor favorita? Eu adoro azul, rosa e preto 🙂
Go Beyond the Basics and Make Your Portuguese More Brazilian 🇧🇷🤩
Over 30 days, you’ll build a richer, more Brazilian vocabulary through engaging lessons in Portuguese filled with stories, cultural insights, examples, and guided practice. Along the way, you’ll strengthen your listening, reading, and communication skills while discovering expressions and vocabulary that give Brazilian Portuguese its personality.
