色

• 拼音: sè
• 汉字拆解: 色 = a kneeling figure emphasising the face — originally facial expression, extended to colour and appearance

含义

Colour; hue; appearance. A foundational character appearing in many essential compounds.

Rarely used alone in modern speech but appears in countless compounds: 颜色 (colour), 红色 (red), 脸色 (complexion), 景色 (scenery), 特色 (distinctive feature), 出色 (outstanding), and 角色 (role). On its own, 色 can carry connotations of lust, so it is best used within compound words.

例句

1. 这件衣服有好几种颜色可以选。
2. 他今天的脸色看起来不太好。
3. 秋天的景色真是美极了。

用法指南

语境: description, everyday, fashion

语气: neutral

正确说法

• 你喜欢什么颜色？(What colour do you like?)
• 她今天脸色不太好，是不是生病了？(Her complexion doesn't look good today — is she ill?)

错误说法

• 这个色很好看 without the 颜 prefix (When talking about colour, use the full compound 颜色 — 色 alone sounds incomplete or potentially inappropriate in some contexts)

起源与历史

The character 色 originally depicted a kneeling person, suggesting facial expression and appearance. Over time it came to mean colour and outward appearance broadly.

文化背景

世代: All ages

社会背景: Universal