About
The character for the color green, 绿, derives from the semantic component for silk (纟 in its simplified form, originating from 糸) combined with the phonetic component 录, which originally depicted water dripping through a filter, a process associated with extracting dyes. This structure reflects its early meaning tied not directly to the abstract color, but to the tangible action of dyeing silk threads, particularly with pigments derived from plants. Over centuries, its application shifted from describing the dyeing process itself to denoting the resulting color, primarily green but sometimes extending to a bluish-green hue. The character’s traditional form, 綠, retains the more complex silk radical, maintaining this visual connection to its textile origins. While its core meaning as a color has remained stable, its usage has broadened in modern contexts to encompass concepts of environmentalism and ecological sustainability, extending the metaphor of natural vitality inherent in the color it names.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
绿色的树真好看。
草地上长满了绿草。
春天公园里一片绿色。
我喜欢穿绿色的衬衫。
绿灯亮了，我们可以走了。
这座城市绿化做得很好。
他的环保理念非常绿色。
她终于拿到了美国绿卡。