United colours of English: colour idioms in English

Ask native speakers of almost any language and they will tell you that their native tongue is a rich and varied language.

The Italians might tell you that their language is the best and most expressive in Europe, whilst the Czechs will argue that it’s their language that has the most words and the richest variation of adjectives to subtly differentiate between things.

Who can say where English stands in the league table of ‘rich languages’? But I have noticed a few times that English seems to have rather a lot of idioms containing colours.

Turning green then blacking out

Take the colour black (some people say it’s a shade, not a colour, but never mind). If a situation is black and white, it’s one that offers two clear choices and is in no way confusing. If you black out, it’s probably best to do it on a soft carpet, as it means losing consciousness – and that usually involves falling over. The colour of the carpet, I may add, is irrelevant.

What about green? Well, if you’re green you’re naive. But on the other hand the speaker might be implying that you’re envious (green with envy). Either way, he wouldn’t be complimenting you much.

Blue in the face and in the red

And if you’re red? Well, you might be in the red at the bank, which means you owe them money. Or are you just red from all the paperwork that the bank demanded from you when you took out a mortgage (red tape means bureaucracy)?

In some cases, it depends whether the colour is visible, I suppose. If you’re blue in the face then you’re probably frustrated, but if you’re feeling blue, then it’s likely that you’re more unhappy than frustrated.

There are many more, of course. I reckon English is pretty high up that colour idiom league table. But what do I know? I don’t speak Italian, for instance. Perhaps you do. Does your language beat English for colour idioms?