Exercises

1. Look at a and answer these questions.

1. Which four of these colours can be used to describe hair?

2. Which three of these colours might be used to describe an animal?

3. Which of the shades of red would you be most likely to use about the sky at sunset?

4. Which four of these colours are the most vivid?

5. Which of the blue and brown colours are used about shoes?

6. What colour is the traditional London bus?

7. Would you prefer to have mousy hair or auburn hair? Why?

8. When you are outside at night and you can't see, how can you describe the darkness?

2. Look at C. Match the situation on the left with the response on the right.

1. That child looks a bit green.	No, they make me feel sick.
2. He's always in a blue mood these days.	Yes, it's not at all clear what we should do.
3. That TV programme always makes him see red.	Yes, but they need qualifications.
4. It’s a bit of a grey area, isn't it?	I think he's going to be sick.
5. They seem to be trying to blacken his name.	Yes, they want to do their bit for environment.
6. Do you like white knuckle rides?	Yes, he can't stand the presenter.
7. White-collar workers earn more.	Yes, ever since his wife left him.
8. They're going to vote for the Greens.	I wonder what they've got against him?

3. Look up the colours below in an English learner's dictionary. Write down any new and useful expressions in example sentences of your own.

black

white

red

blue

yellow

green

4. Advertisers often use exotic words with special associations to indicate colour. Look at the words in the box and answer the questions. Use a dictionary if necessary.

magnolia	strawberry	violet	ruby	emerald
burgundy	forget-me-not	jade	amber	cornflower
poppy	sapphire	turquoise	lime	coral

1. Which of the words in the box refer to precious or semi-precious stones?

2. Which of the words in the box refer to flowers?

3. Which of the words in the box refer to food or drink?

4. Which of the words in the box would be used to describe pastel shades?

5. Divide the words in the box into the basic colours that they refer to:

pink/red blue green other (specify colour)

6. Which two of the precious stone words are most likely to be used to describe the sea?

7. Which two of the flowers words is a romantic novelist most likely to use to describe his heroine's eyes?

8. Which of the words are (a) purplish red (b) creamy white and (c) yellowy orange?

5. Choose ten words or expressions that you particularly wish to learn from this unit and write them down in sentences of your own.

B. The Plastic Arts