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color spectrum

color spectrum

1 4.0
A range of visible colors from red to violet when light passes through a prism
  • noun
  • /ˈkʌlər ˈspɛktrəm/
  • Specialized
translation icon : espectro de colores
  • The color spectrum shows the gradual transition between colors, making it essential for understanding light.
  • from red to violet

I I know that greens are at the other end of the color spectrum from me, all pink and red.

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Examples

  • The red end of the color spectrum is lost first, and then color is lost, progressing across the rainbow from red toward the blue end.

    Academic text (2001)
  • And that basically tells you where on the color spectrum that light will lie.

  • I mean this covers a lot of the the color spectrum, so it's pretty easy to match Sure.

  • Let's keep the color spectrum within narrow parameters.

  • The shift was also noticeable along the color spectrum as well.

    Academic text (2003)
  • At this depth, the full color spectrum of sunlight was filtered by the water and ice above, and the sea floor appeared gray and gloomy.

    Academic text (1992)
  • The eye is sensitive more to the yellowish green portion of the color spectrum and the daguerreotype to the the Violet rays.

  • When light passes through a prism, it creates a beautiful display of the color spectrum from red to violet.

  • Artists often choose their paints based on how they represent the different shades in the color spectrum.

Synonyms

spectrum
vscolor spectrum
46 5.4

A band of colours seen in a rainbow when light splits

is limited to the colors formed when visible light splits through a prism
visible spectrum
vscolor spectrum
  • Specialized
1 3.9

The colors that our eyes can see from red to violet

focuses on the colors that appear when light disperses through a prism

Surface Forms

color spectrum singular
colour spectrum singular

Morphology

color + spectrum

The meaning is directly and transparently derived from combining 'color' (hues) with 'spectrum' (a band or range); together they straightforwardly denote the range of colors. This noun+noun composition is compositional and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

The noun color spectrum comes from the simple image of white light being split by a prism or a piece of glass into a long band of colors, like a small rainbow. So color spectrum, with color and spectrum as its parts, means the full 'range of colors' you can see, often listed from 'red to violet'.