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灰色 (はいいろ) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

灰はい色いろ

は

い

い

ろ

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 10,000

Meanings

1

noun, noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'

grey; gray; ashen

Refers to the color grey, or metaphorically to something dull, gloomy, or lacking clarity. The reading かいしょく is obsolete.

空そらは灰はい色いろの雲くもで覆おおわれていた。
The sky was covered with grey clouds.
彼かれ

は

灰はい

色いろ

の

スーツ

を

着き

て

い

た

。

He was wearing a grey suit.

Written forms

灰色Usage99%
- はいいろ
  Standard kanji spelling; the reading はいいろ is the modern common reading.
- かいしょく
  out-dated reading
ハイイロUsage1%
かいしょく
out-dated reading

Kanji

灰ashes, puckery juice, cremate
色color

Similar words

グレー
Loanword from English, often used in fashion or design contexts, and can also mean 'ambiguous' or 'in-between' in a more modern, casual sense.
鼠ねずみ色いろ
A traditional Japanese color term for a darker, more muted grey, literally 'mouse color'.

Etymology

Compound of 灰 (はい, 'ash') and 色 (いろ, 'color'), literally 'ash color'. The obsolete reading かいしょく uses the older on'yomi for 灰.