绿
green
lǜ
What does 绿 mean?
绿 (lǜ) is the color adjective 'green.' Like other Chinese color words, 绿 usually needs the suffix 色 (sè, 'color') when used as a noun — 绿色 means 'the color green.' As a modifier before a noun, it often takes 的: 绿色的衣服 'green clothes,' though 绿茶 'green tea' and 绿灯 'green light' drop both 色 and 的 because they are fixed compounds.
Two cultural notes English speakers should know. First, 绿 carries the same 'go / safe / environmental' associations as English green: 绿灯 means go, 绿色食品 means organic food. Second, the phrase 戴绿帽子 (wear a green hat) is a famous idiom meaning 'to be cheated on by one's spouse,' so giving a Chinese man a green hat is a real cultural mistake to avoid.
Character breakdown
green; the color of leaves and grass
Memory hook: The 纟 (silk) radical hints at dyed cloth — 绿 was originally the green of dyed silk thread.
Example sentences
我喜欢绿色。
Wǒ xǐhuan lǜsè.
I like the color green.
spoken
她买了一件绿色的衣服。
Tā mǎi le yí jiàn lǜsè de yīfu.
She bought a green piece of clothing.
neutral
绿灯了，可以走了。
Lǜdēng le, kěyǐ zǒu le.
The light is green, we can go.
spoken
春天到了，树叶都绿了。
Chūntiān dào le, shùyè dōu lǜ le.
Spring has arrived; the leaves have all turned green.
neutral
我每天早上喝一杯绿茶。
Wǒ měi tiān zǎoshang hē yì bēi lǜchá.
I drink a cup of green tea every morning.
neutral
Common phrases with 绿
Synonyms
青 is an older color word covering green, blue-green, and sometimes black. 青草 is grass and 青山 is mountains, but in modern Chinese 绿 is the everyday word for green; 青 sounds literary or fixed in compounds.
Don't confuse 绿 with
录 (lù) means 'to record' (录音 'recording'). Same right-side component as 绿 but no silk radical and different tone — 绿 is fourth tone with ü; 录 is fourth tone with u.