C2 · 50 words
Light and colour in Spanish
Brightness, shadow and hue — named exactly.
Practise this list
From these 50 words, as many per round as you like — up to all of them: first what is due today, then new ones. First you choose, then you fill the gap, then you write it yourself. Mistakes come back again shortly.
More about this list
There are two ways of talking about light. One is « bright » and « dark »; the other separates how much light there is (la luminosidad), how hard it falls (la sombra proyectada) and what colour it brings with it (la dominante de color). Describing a room, a photograph or a painting needs the second. The word to carry away is el mate. English has two unrelated « mate »s: the companion, from the old word for somebody who shares your food, and the one at the end of a game of chess, which arrived through Arabic and Persian. Spanish el mate covers the chess one and the surface in this list, the one that does not reflect, but never the companion — that is el compañero. And in South America el mate is the drink, which is a third word again.
The words
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Adjective (3)
desvaídofadedAdjectiveC2
La tela quedó desvaída tras dos veranos al sol.The cloth was left faded after two summers in the sun.
apagadomutedAdjectiveC2
Eligieron un verde apagado para el pasillo.They chose a muted green for the corridor.
chillóngarishAdjectiveC2
El rosa chillón desentona con el resto.The garish pink jars with the rest.
Phrase (34)
la claridad difusathe diffuse brightnessPhraseC2
Bajo el cielo cubierto hay una claridad difusa sin sombras.Under an overcast sky there is a diffuse brightness with no shadows.
la luz tamizadathe filtered lightPhraseC2
La luz tamizada por la cortina no molesta al leer.Light filtered through the curtain does not disturb reading.
la luz reflejada en el techothe light bounced off the ceilingPhraseC2
La luz reflejada en el techo suaviza toda la habitación.The light bounced off the ceiling softens the whole room.
el reflejo especularthe mirror reflectionPhraseC2
El reflejo especular en el agua duplica el puente.The mirror reflection in the water doubles the bridge.
la sombra proyectadathe cast shadowPhraseC2
La sombra proyectada de la reja cruza el suelo.The cast shadow of the railing crosses the floor.
la sombra propiathe form shadowPhraseC2
La sombra propia de la esfera es lo que le da volumen.The form shadow of the sphere is what gives it volume.
la dominante de colorthe colour castPhraseC2
La dominante de color verdosa venía del fluorescente.The greenish colour cast came from the fluorescent tube.
el tono cálidothe warm tonePhraseC2
El tono cálido de la madera suaviza la habitación.The warm tone of the wood softens the room.
el tono fríothe cold tonePhraseC2
El tono frío del acero domina la fachada.The cold tone of the steel dominates the façade.
el color quebradothe broken colourPhraseC2
Todo el cuadro está pintado en colores quebrados.The whole painting is done in broken colours.
el color planothe flat colourPhraseC2
El cartel usa colores planos sin sombra.The poster uses flat colours with no shadow.
la gama cromáticathe range of coloursPhraseC2
La gama cromática del otoño se repite en la alfombra.The range of colours of autumn is repeated in the carpet.
la capa transparente de colorthe transparent layer of colourPhraseC2
Una capa transparente de color deja ver el fondo.A transparent layer of colour lets the ground show through.
el brillo especularthe specular highlightPhraseC2
Un brillo especular en el ojo hace vivo el retrato.A specular highlight in the eye makes a portrait alive.
virar haciato turn towardsPhraseC2
Con los años el barniz vira hacia el amarillo.Over the years the varnish turns towards yellow.
el contraste tonalthe tonal contrastPhraseC2
El contraste tonal es lo que se ve de lejos.Tonal contrast is what can be seen from a distance.
el punto de fuga de la luzthe source of the light in the picturePhraseC2
El punto de fuga de la luz está fuera del cuadro.The source of the light in the picture is outside the frame.
la gradación de la sombrathe gradation of the shadowPhraseC2
La gradación de la sombra es lo más difícil de dibujar.The gradation of the shadow is the hardest thing to draw.
la iluminación indirectathe indirect lightingPhraseC2
La iluminación indirecta evita sombras duras en la cara.Indirect lighting avoids hard shadows on the face.
la fuente puntualthe point sourcePhraseC2
Una fuente puntual produce sombras de borde limpio.A point source produces shadows with a clean edge.
la lámina traslúcidathe translucent sheetPhraseC2
Colocaron una lámina traslúcida delante del foco.They put a translucent sheet in front of the lamp.
el brillo cegadorthe blinding glarePhraseC2
El brillo cegador del mediodía obliga a bajar la persiana.The blinding glare at midday makes people lower the blind.
la sombra arrojada por el alerothe shadow thrown by the eavesPhraseC2
La sombra arrojada por el alero protege la puerta en verano.The shadow thrown by the eaves protects the door in summer.
la incidencia de la luzthe angle at which the light fallsPhraseC2
La incidencia de la luz cambia por completo a las cinco.The angle at which the light falls changes completely at five.
el índice de reproducción cromáticathe colour rendering indexPhraseC2
El índice de reproducción cromática figura en la caja.The colour rendering index is printed on the box.
la mezcla aditivathe additive mixingPhraseC2
En la pantalla rige la mezcla aditiva, no la del pincel.On a screen it is additive mixing that applies, not the mixing of the brush.
la mezcla sustractivathe subtractive mixingPhraseC2
La mezcla sustractiva explica por qué el gris aparece tan pronto.Subtractive mixing explains why grey turns up so soon.
la armonía cromáticathe colour harmonyPhraseC2
La armonía cromática de la sala se rompió con un cojín.The colour harmony of the room was broken by one cushion.
el fondo neutrothe neutral backgroundPhraseC2
Sobre fondo neutro se juzga mejor un color.A colour is better judged against a neutral background.
la aureola de luzthe halo of lightPhraseC2
Una aureola de luz rodea la farola en la niebla.A halo of light surrounds the street lamp in the fog.
la sombra alargada del atardecerthe long shadow of the late afternoonPhraseC2
La sombra alargada del atardecer llega hasta el otro lado.The long shadow of the late afternoon reaches the other side.
a contraluzagainst the lightPhraseC2
A contraluz solo se distingue la silueta.Against the light only the outline can be made out.
bañado en luzbathed in lightPhraseC2
El patio estaba bañado en luz a esa hora.The courtyard was bathed in light at that hour.
la caída de luz hacia el fondothe fall-off of light towards the backPhraseC2
La caída de luz hacia el fondo da profundidad a la escena.The fall-off of light towards the back gives the scene depth.
Noun (f) (5)
la luminosidadthe amount of lightNoun (f)C2
La luminosidad del taller decidió la compra.The amount of light in the workshop decided the purchase.
la penumbrathe half-darkNoun (f)C2
La sala quedó en penumbra antes de la proyección.The room was left in half-dark before the screening.
la retroiluminaciónthe backlightingNoun (f)C2
La retroiluminación del panel se regula por separado.The backlighting of the panel is adjusted separately.
la opacidadthe covering powerNoun (f)C2
La opacidad del blanco varía según la marca.The covering power of white varies from brand to brand.
la translucidezthe translucencyNoun (f)C2
La translucidez del alabastro se nota a contraluz.The translucency of alabaster shows against the light.
Noun (m) (8)
el destellothe brief flashNoun (m)C2
Un destello en el cristal delató la cámara.A brief flash on the glass gave the camera away.
el resplandorthe glowNoun (m)C2
El resplandor de la ciudad borra las estrellas.The glow of the city rubs out the stars.
el degradadothe gradation of colourNoun (m)C2
El degradado del cielo va del naranja al gris.The gradation of colour in the sky runs from orange to grey.
el pigmentothe pigmentNoun (m)C2
El pigmento azul era el más caro del taller.The blue pigment was the most expensive in the workshop.
el aglutinantethe binderNoun (m)C2
El aglutinante decide si la pintura brilla o no.The binder decides whether the paint has a sheen or not.
el matethe matt finishNoun (m)C2
Prefirieron el mate para que no reflejara la ventana.They chose the matt finish so that it would not reflect the window.
el satinadothe satin sheenNoun (m)C2
El satinado del papel realza los grises.The satin sheen of the paper brings out the greys.
el complementariothe complementary colourNoun (m)C2
El complementario del rojo apaga la mancha en un paso.The complementary colour puts out the stain in one step.
This list belongs to Language and expression — 22 lists and 1 102 words that can also be practised as a whole.