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Glite Dictionary
🥑 Healthier fat 💧 Can dissolve more 🎨 Less vivid color
unsaturated

unsaturated

5.8
A color made less bright by mixing it with white or grey
  • adjective
  • /ˌʌnˈsætʃəˌreɪtɪd/
  • Specialized
translation icon : desaturado
  • The curtains were made of an unsaturated green fabric that complemented the room's decor.

Examples

  • Her dress featured an unsaturated red shade, which softened the overall look of the outfit.

  • Like I don't know, it's very unsaturated, like it's not very colourful.

  • The artist chose an unsaturated blue for the sky to create a calm atmosphere in the painting.

Synonyms

dull
vsunsaturated
31 1.0

Not bright or shiny with weak colour

is specifically color dilution by neutrals rather than general lack of brightness
muddy
vsunsaturated
11 2.7

A dull, unclear color that looks mixed and lifeless

is produced by neutral dilution, not impurity or dirt effects
washed-out
vsunsaturated
4 4.4

A color or object that has lost brightness and looks pale

is due to dilution with neutrals rather than general loss of brightness
undersaturated
vsunsaturated
  • Specialized
7.0

Having weak color so pictures or photos look pale

is about dilution with white, grey, or black reducing vividness
nonsaturated
vsunsaturated
6.6

A color that is not bright and looks soft

is caused specifically by mixing with white, grey, or black
washy
vsunsaturated
8.0

Faded or pale in color, not bright

is caused by mixing with white, grey, or black not merely weakness
faded
vsunsaturated
2.1

Clothes or photos with color that is no longer bright and looks washed out

is created by dilution with neutrals rather than gradual aging
muddied
vsunsaturated
5.0

A color made less bright because it has dirt or other colors mixed in

is defined by mixing with white, grey, or black instead of contamination

Antonyms

saturated
1 3.9

A color that is very strong and not mixed with white or grey

Compounds

unsaturated compound
  • Specialized
5.8

A chemical that has at least one double or triple bond between carbon atoms

unsaturated fatty acid
  • Specialized
3.7

A fat with double bonds in its carbon chain

How Vivid

intense
16 3.4
vivid
23 3.0
normal
∞ 1.0
unsaturated
  • Specialized
5.8
pale
291 1.0
washed-out
4 4.4

Surface Forms

unsaturated positive

Morphology

unsaturated = saturated (transparent) = un + saturate + ed

The color sense is the straightforward negative of 'saturated' (i.e., not fully vivid or intense), so learners can derive the meaning from the base.

Etymology

The word unsaturated comes from the prefix un- 'not' and saturate 'to fill', so an unsaturated color is 'not full' of pigment and looks mixed or watered down, making it less bright.