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Glite Dictionary
achromatic vision

achromatic vision

8.2
The ability to see only shades of grey without colour
  • noun
  • /ˌeɪkrəˈmætɪk ˈvɪʒən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : visión acromática
  • Some animals rely mostly on achromatic vision for navigating in low-light conditions.

Examples

  • Many animals, like cats, have achromatic vision at night.

  • People with certain visual disorders may experience the world through achromatic vision rather than seeing colors.

  • The test showed that his achromatic vision was functioning normally, but he had difficulty distinguishing colors.

  • Do you know what achromatic vision means?

  • People with achromatic vision can only see shades of gray and cannot perceive colors.

  • His achromatic vision makes it difficult for him to distinguish between different flowers.

  • Due to her achromatic vision, she experienced the painting only in black, white, and gray.

Synonyms

achromatopsia
vsachromatic vision
  • Specialized
9.9

A condition in which a person cannot see colors and only sees shades of gray

is the general visual state linked to rod cell use, not the medical label
monochromasy
vsachromatic vision
  • Specialized
9.9

People with complete color blindness see only shades of gray

is the same gray-only perception but named as a clinical condition
monochromatic vision
vsachromatic vision
  • Specialized
9.0

A condition in which a person sees the world only in shades of gray

is the same rod-based gray perception described in physiological terms

Antonyms

color vision
  • US
1 2.5

To see and tell different colors with your eyes

How Colorful

color vision
  • US
1 2.5
color blindness
  • US
1 3.7
achromatic vision
  • Specialized
8.2

Surface Forms

achromatic vision singular
achromatic visions plural

Morphology

achromatic + vision

The meaning 'vision without colour' is directly and compositionally derived from 'achromatic' (without color / black-and-white) combined with 'vision' (sight). This regular adjective + noun formation is cross-linguistically common, so a learner who knows both constituents can readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Achromatic vision comes from the parts a-, meaning 'without', and chromatic, meaning 'colour'. Imagine looking at the world like a black-and-white photo, seeing only shades of grey, so it means 'vision without colour'.