colour

The word “colour” means british spelling of color: the visual quality that separates red from blue, green from yellow, and so on. In plain terms, the standard British/Commonwealth spelling of "color.".

Here is “colour” used in a sentence: “She repainted the wall a soft grey colour.”

Depending on how it is used, “colour” can be a noun and a verb.

“Colour” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.

“Colour” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: british spelling of color: the visual quality that separates red from blue, green from yellow, and so on.

There is no difference in meaning, only in spelling. "Colour" is the standard British and Commonwealth form, used across the UK, Ireland, Australia, and Canada, while "color" is the American form. The same split applies to related words like colourful and coloured versus colorful and colored.

Both are correct; it depends on your audience. Use "colour" for British, Australian, or Canadian readers, and "color" for an American one. The key is consistency: pick the spelling that matches your region or style guide and apply it throughout, rather than mixing the two forms.

In traditional painting, the primary colours are red, yellow, and blue, which mix to make the others. In screens and light, the primaries are red, green, and blue (RGB), while printing uses cyan, magenta, and yellow. Which set applies depends on whether you are mixing pigments or light.

The difference dates to the early 1800s, when American lexicographer Noah Webster promoted simpler, more phonetic spellings and dropped the "u" from words like colour, honour, and favour. Britain kept the older forms, inherited from French and Latin, so the two spelling systems have diverged ever since.