French flag

Colours in '-âtre': when 'bluish' and 'greenish' sound a bit unpleasant

French can turn a colour adjective into an approximate colour by adding the suffix -âtre: bleu gives bleuâtre, vert gives verdâtre, gris gives grisâtre. At first sight this looks exactly like English -ish: bluish, greenish, greyish. The dictionary translations say the same thing, so it is tempting to use these words whenever you mean simply somewhat blue or somewhat green.

The catch is connotation. English -ish is mostly neutral, but French -âtre often suggests a dull, murky, sickly or unattractive shade. A teint jaunâtre is not a pleasant golden complexion: it is a complexion that looks unwell. If you want to compliment a colour, -âtre is usually the wrong tool.

Word list
blanchâtreB2 whitish un dépôt blanchâtre bleuâtreB2 bluish une lumière bleuâtre jaunâtreB2 yellowish un teint jaunâtre rougeâtreB2 reddish des taches rougeâtres verdâtreB2 greenish une eau verdâtre brunâtreC1 brownish une eau brunâtre grisâtreC1 grayish un ciel grisâtre
How it works

The suffix -âtre expresses two things at once: an approximation (not quite blue, not quite green) and, very frequently, a slightly negative judgement (dirty, washed out, unhealthy, dreary). The negative shade is not obligatory, but it is common enough that native speakers hear it in most everyday contexts. It is strongest when the word describes skin, water, food or the sky.

L'eau avait une couleur verdâtre peu rassurante.
(The water had an unappealing, greenish colour.)

When you just want a neutral or attractive approximation, French has other options. The suffix -té in bleuté or rosé is neutral or even pleasant, and phrases like tirant sur le vert (verging on green) or d'un vert pâle simply describe the colour without judging it.

Ses yeux gris ont des reflets bleutés.
(Her grey eyes have bluish glints.)
Elle portait une robe d'un vert tirant sur le bleu.
(She was wearing a dress of a green verging on blue.)

Rule of thumb: -âtre describes, -té or tirant sur flatter, or at least stay neutral.

The words

Bleuâtre and grisâtre often set a cold, gloomy or eerie scene. Think of neon light, concrete, winter skies.

Une lumière bleuâtre éclairait les murs grisâtres.
(A bluish light illuminated the greyish walls.)
Ce ciel grisâtre de novembre me déprime.
(This dreary grey November sky gets me down.)

Jaunâtre and rougeâtre are typical of health and skin: they suggest illness, irritation or ageing.

Après sa maladie, il avait le teint jaunâtre.
(After his illness, he had a sallow, yellowish complexion.)
Des taches rougeâtres sont apparues sur sa peau.
(Reddish blotches appeared on his skin.)

Verdâtre and brunâtre are the classic words for water or liquids you would rather not drink.

Après l'orage, la rivière charriait une eau brunâtre.
(After the storm, the river was carrying murky brownish water.)

Blanchâtre often describes deposits, films and residues: things that look dirty or out of place.

Le calcaire laisse un dépôt blanchâtre dans la bouilloire.
(Limescale leaves a whitish deposit in the kettle.)

You will also meet noirâtre (blackish), which works the same way.

Watch out

The negative effect depends on context. In technical or descriptive writing, such as botany, geology or medicine, -âtre can be close to neutral, simply meaning approximately this colour. Even then it rarely sounds attractive.

Les feuilles jaunâtres de ton ficus montrent qu'il manque de lumière.
(The yellowish leaves on your ficus show that it lacks light.)

Mind the spelling. The circumflex is always there, and vert becomes verdâtre with a d, while blanc becomes blanchâtre. All these adjectives end in -e, so the masculine and feminine forms are identical, and they take an -s in the plural: des murs grisâtres, des lumières bleuâtres. This is different from compound colours like bleu clair, which do not change.

The negative flavour of -âtre is not limited to colours: douceâtre means unpleasantly sweet, and a bellâtre is a vain, would-be handsome man. This confirms the general tendency of the suffix.

Summary

Treat -âtre colours as approximate and often unflattering: verdâtre, jaunâtre or grisâtre suit murky water, sickly skin and dreary skies. For a neutral or pleasant shade, use bleuté, d'un vert pâle or tirant sur le vert instead.