Colors are a fundamental part of any language as they allow you to express yourself, describe objects and places and everything around you. That is why, when you are starting to learn Spanish from scratch, colors are one of the first vocabulary lessons to be taught.

Everything is full of colors: clothes, art, decoration, books, objects... Practically any animate or inanimate being has color and in your Spanish course you can't miss this lesson. Describe anything you set your mind to once you have learned the Spanish colors.

Read this article in Spanish if you prefer.

Spanish colors list

Before differentiating colors according to their category on the color wheel, this complete list of colors in Spanish will help you learn them:

• Azul - Blue
• Amarillo - Yellow
• Rojo - Red
• Rosa - Pink
• Naranja - Orange
• Verde - Green
• Violeta - Violet
• Morado - Purple
• Turquesa - Turquoise
• Marrón - Brown
• Negro - Black
• Blanco - White
• Gris - Gray
• Plateado - Silver
• Dorado - Gold
• Fucsia - Fuchsia
• Lila - Lilac
• Beige
• Azul celeste - Light Blue
• Caqui - Khaki

Although there are many more colors and subtonalities of each color, below, you will be able to distinguish them in the chromatic circle and differentiate them by their category.

Spanish color wheel

The Spanish color wheel or chromatic circle is an ordered representation of colors according to their shades in a circular shape. It represents the primary colors and their derivatives.

It is a fundamental tool for composing and creating designs, but for you, as a student of Spanish, it will help you to learn the different shades of colors and names.

Primary colors are those that cannot be obtained from a mixture of colors. There are three: amarillo, magenta, and cian (yellow, red, and blue). While secondary colors are those that come from the mixture of the primary colors, they are violeta, naranja, and verde (violet, orange, and green).

Also, there are the complementary colors, those that are opposite to the primary colors in the chromatic circle. For each primary color there is a complementary one that is formed by a primary and a secondary one:

• Rojo and verde (red and green)
• Amarillo and violeta (yellow and violet)
• Azul and naranja (blue and orange)

In addition, in the Spanish color wheel there are the warm and cold colors. The warm colors are rojo, naranja, and amarillo (red, orange, and yellow); while the cool colors are verde, azul, and violeta (green, blue, and violet).

Are black and white not in the Spanish color wheel? Yes, these two colors are not part of the color wheel. These two colors are neutral, like gray, so they do not appear in the color wheel because they lack color.

Below, you will find examples of sentences with different Spanish colors that can help you learn how to use them, their order and their gender and number:

• El profesor lleva una chaqueta azul oscuro y un maletín marrón (The teacher is wearing a dark blue jacket and a brown briefcase)
• ¿Sabes dónde he dejado mi bufanda rosa? (Do you know where I left my pink scarf?)
• Mi taza preferida es de color rojo (My favorite mug is red)
• El amarillo es el color preferido de mi tía (Yellow is my aunt's favorite color)
• La mesa dorada está junto al sofá morado (The golden table is next to the purple sofa)
• La botella verde tiene un dibujo de una piña amarilla (The green bottle has a drawing of a yellow pineapple)
• El cielo azul está lleno de nubes grises (The blue sky is filled with gray clouds)
• El coche de mi primo es naranja, pero el techo y los retrovisores son negros (My cousin's car is orange, but the roof and the mirrors are black)
• El bolso blanco tiene un toque lila que me encanta (The white bag has a lilac touch that I love)
• La portada de ese libro es roja con las páginas pintadas de azul (The cover of that book is red with blue painted pages)

What colors would you add to this list? Which is your favorite? Ask your friends and family in Spanish what their favorite color is and practice the vocabulary you have learned. The colors allow you to describe objects, art, people, clothes, and much more. DonQuijote Spanish School encourages you to improve your level, increase your vocabulary and practice the language!

Are you learning Spanish and need to differentiate prefixes and suffixes? DonQuijote Spanish school gives you the keys you need to learn Spanish prefixes and suffixes with several examples.

Read this article in Spanish here.

What are Spanish prefixes and suffixes?

Spanish prefixes and suffixes are affix elements that lack autonomy and need a lexical base to which they contribute a new meaning. These elements give rise to new words, so the Spanish prefixes and suffixes are not words as such.

The process of word formation that suffixes and prefixes create in Spanish is called derivación (stemming). Spanish suffixes are added behind the word, while Spanish prefixes are added in front.

Neither Spanish prefixes nor suffixes can be used by themselves because their meaning depends on the word they modify. Therefore, these morphemes are autonomous and have no meaning.

In addition, suffixes and prefixes are widely used in many languages, not only in Spanish since they make it possible to create new words by adding a morpheme before or after the root.

Spanish prefixes

Spanish prefixes are added before the word they are going to modify. In addition, prefixation changes the meaning of the words, but does not modify the grammatical category. 

These are some of the most common Spanish prefixes and their meanings:

• A-: means negation or lack of something. Example: apolítico (apolitical), amorfo (amorphous).
• Anti-: indicates opposition or contradiction. Example: antinatural (unnatural), antibiótico (antibiotic).
• Auto-: refers to something of one's own, to oneself or by oneself. Example: automóvil (automobile), autodidacta (self-taught), automata (automaton).
• Bi-: means double or two. Example: bilateral, bidireccional, bisexual, bipolar.
• Co-: shows union or participation. Example: cooperar (cooperate), cofundador (co-founder).
• De-, des-, di-, dis-: means negation, excess, out of, opposition or difficulty. Example: despeinar (unkempt), discordia (discord), desordenar (disorder), discapacidad (disability), deshacer (undo).
• Extra-: means from outside or too much. Example: extraterrestre (extraterrestrial), extraofficial (unofficial).
• Geo-: pertaining or relating to the earth. Example: geografía (geography), geolocalizar (geolocate).
• Hemi-: means half. Example: hemisferio (hemisphere), hemiciclo (hemicycle).
• Hipo-: below the expected or meager. Example: hipotermia (hypothermia), hipócrita (hypocrite).
• I, in-, im-: signals negation or inversion of what the root word expresses. Example: impostor, imposible, indecisión, inmoral, ilegible (unreadable), insoportable (unbearable).

• Infra-: means below or inferior to. Example: infraestructura (infrastructure), infravalorado (undervalued), inframundo (underworld).
• Intra-: points inward or inside something. Example: Intramuros, intranet, intramuscular.
• Kilo-: means a thousand times. Example: kilogramo (kilogram), kilómetro (kilometer), kilovatio (kilowatt).
• Mega-: means very large, amplified or a million times. Examples: megáfono (megaphone), megavoltio (megavolt).
• Micro-: points to something very small or small. Example: microrrelato (microstory), microscópico (microscopic).
• Mini-: means small. Example: minifalda (miniskirt), minimalista (minimalist), minibús.
• Multi-: means many or multiple. Example: multicolor, multimillonario, multicultural.
• Post-, pos-: means behind or after. Examples: posdata (PS), posguerra (post-war), postoperatorio (post-surgery).
• Pre-: means before. Example: prehistoria (prehistory), predisponer (predispose), prejuicio (prejudice).
• Pro-: signals negation, continuity or before. Example: prólogo (prologue), proseguir (to continue), procrastinar (procrastinate).
• Re-: signals repetition or intensification. Examples: revisar (revise), renombrar (rename), rehacer (redo), recargar (reload).
• Semi-: signals half of something. Example: semicírculo (semicircle), semiabierto (semi-open), semiautomático (semiautomatic).
• Sin-: means lack or deprivation of something; similarity or union. Example: sinónimo (synonym), sinrazón (unreasonable), sinsabor (tasteless).
• Sobre-: signifies superimposition, addition, intensification, or repetition. Example: sobrepasar (surpass), sobrevalorado (overvalue), sobreentender (overunderstand).
• Super-: points to excellence or above something. Example: superdotado (gifted), supermercado (supermarket), superpoderes (superpowers).
• Ultra-: points beyond or extremely. Example: ultratumba (beyond the grave), ultrasonido (ultrasound), ultraprocesado (ultra-processed).

Spanish suffixes

Suffixes in Spanish are added after the word they are going to modify. Also, suffixation adds nuances of meaning and sometimes changes the class to which the original word belongs.

Here are some examples and their meanings of Spanish suffixes:

• -áceo: forms adjectives that indicate similarity or belonging. Example: grisácea (greyish), opiáceo (opiate), rosáceo (rose-colored).
• -al: forms nouns meaning abundance and, when forming adjectives, they indicate relationship or belonging. Example: cultural, frutal (fruity), arenal (sandy), otoñal (autumnal).
• -ante, -ente: form adjectives from verbs. Example: agobiante (overwhelming), dependiente (dependent), crujiente (crunchy).
• -azo: signals augmentative value and expresses affection or a blow given. Example: mazazo, codazo (elbow), portazo.
• -bilidad, -dad, -edad, -idad: all these Spanish suffixes form abstract nouns that derive from adjectives. Examples: estabilidad (stability), soledad (loneliness), maldad (evil), sociedad (society).
• -ción: points to the action of. Example: importación (import), certificación (certification), donación (donation).
• -dor: indicates agent, attribute, office, or instrument. Examples: aterrador (terrifying), entrenador (trainer), calculador (calculating).
• -eda: forms collective nouns and indicates abundance. Examples: arboleda (grove), viñedo (vineyard), alameda (poplar grove), rosaleda (rose garden).
• -filia, -filo: means liking, tendency or sympathy for something or someone. Example: bibliofilia (bibliophilic), cinéfilo (cinephile).
• -isimo: indicates superlative degree. Example: buenísimo, tardísimo, hermosísimo.
• -ismo: alludes to a political doctrine, religion, movement or current; although it can also mean attitude, tendency, or sports activities. Example: atletismo (athletics), socialismo (socialism), alpinismo (mountaineering), comunismo (communism).

• -itis: indicates inflammation. Examples: gastritis, otitis, faringitis (pharyngitis).
• -ito, -ita: functions as a diminutive. Example: calentito, fresquito, suavecito, amiguita, botellita.
• -logía: means treatise, study, or science. Example: simbología (symbology), geología (geology), psicología (psychology), sociología (sociology).
• -miento: form nouns from verbs and mean action and effect. Example: recibimiento (reception), conocimiento (knowledge), entretenimiento (entertainment).
• -ón: indicates augmentative, intense, or derogatory value; it also designates action or effect of something sudden. Examples: juguetón, comilón, almohadón, caserón.
• -oso, -osa: indicates abundance of what it expresses. Example: generoso (generous), perezoso (lazy), golosa (sweet-toothed), miedosa (fearful), revoltoso (unruly), estudiosa (studious).
• -torio: means place and detonates relation with what the root expresses. Example: escritorio (desk), consultorio (office), laboratorio (lab), reivindicatorio (vindicatory).
• -triz: means agent and forms words in feminine genre. Examples: emperatriz (empress), actriz (actress), matriz (womb), institutriz (governess).

It must be considered that, in Spanish, especially in the suffixes, the gender can vary, in masculine and feminine. For example, -isimo can result in guapísimo or guapísima. It is the same suffix, but with a different gender; and the same happens with -on or -dor.

There are many more prefixes and suffixes in Spanish, but the above list includes some of the most common and used ones. Did you know any of them? Which one surprised you the most?

Get into the language and keep learning to become a fluent Spanish speaker. If you still have doubts and don’t know yet how to improve your level, check donQuijote's Spanish courses in Spain, we will help you reach your goals in a short time and in an effective way.