primary color

noun

: any of a set of colors from which all other colors may be derived

Examples of primary color in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
New functional elements include modular benches done in vivid primary colors. R. Daniel Foster, Forbes.com, 23 May 2025 Before the 2019 season, there was a rule that a player’s shoes must contain at least 51 percent of the team’s primary color. C. Trent Rosecrans, New York Times, 20 May 2025 White and red are the primary colors of papal dress, with white representing purity and charity, and red representing compassion and sacrifice. Leah Dolan, CNN Money, 24 Apr. 2025 This allows a high-density LED backlight to individually control the red, green and blue primary color elements that go into creating a TV picture, so that each color can emit its own light independently of the others. John Archer, Forbes, 13 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for primary color

Word History

First Known Use

1817, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of primary color was in 1817

Cite this Entry

“Primary color.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/primary%20color. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.

Kids Definition

primary color

noun
: any of a set of colors from which all other colors may be made with the colors for light being red, green, and blue and for pigments or paint being red, yellow, and blue

Medical Definition

primary color

noun
: any of a set of colors (as red, yellow, and blue or red, green, and blue) from which all other colors may be derived

More from Merriam-Webster on primary color

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