# Do you think black and white are colors? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 29, 2013, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582 "2013-10-29T19:36:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 10:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/21 "2013-10-30T10:36:29Z")
Yes, definitely they are colours. Maybe not colors, but definitely colours. If I go “what colour is my shirt?”, only a pedantic asshole is going to say “it’s _not_ a colour, it’s a _shaaaaade_, Pointdexter!_flounce_” rather than “It’s black.” ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/22 "2013-10-30T11:38:03Z")
The proof that black and white are not colors is quite simple. What do you call a TV set that can display red, green, and blue? That’s right a color TV. And if it can’t? It’s a black and white TV, not a color TV. Same for movies. If you take a movie shot in black and white and modify it to display colors it’s called ‘colorized’. Black and white aren’t colors. If they were then the terms black and white TV, and black and white movies wouldn’t make any sense compared to their colored versions. ---
**Author:** ![sentrix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@sentrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sentrix)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/23 "2013-10-30T11:42:39Z")
black, white and grey are neutrals. so my art teacher said. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/24 "2013-10-30T12:18:59Z")
I voted for color since there was no option for “Babette should mind her own fucking business and stop filling someone else’s kids head with nonsense.” ---
**Author:** ![Staggerlee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/staggerlee/32/3134_2.png) [@Staggerlee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Staggerlee)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/25 "2013-10-30T12:36:14Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > The proof that black and white are not colors is quite simple. What do you call a TV set that can display red, green, and blue? That’s right a color TV. And if it can’t? It’s a black and white TV, not a color TV. Probably best not to bring up the mythical ‘black and white TV’ with a four-year-old, though. That’ll just confuse matters further. And yes, black and white are colours, and then at a certain age kids learn that mixing light is whole different matter from mixing paint, and then that counter-intuitive bridge can be crossed. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/26 "2013-10-30T12:38:40Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I voted for color since there was no option for “Babette should mind her own fucking business and stop filling someone else’s kids head with nonsense.” In terms of babysitting faux pas, this one is pretty low on the list. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/27 "2013-10-30T13:13:07Z")
For all intents and purposes they are colors: “What colors does this shirt come in?” “Red. It also comes in white and also black, but you didn’t ask that.” ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/28 "2013-10-30T13:31:04Z")
I think you mean for all _practical_ purposes. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/29 "2013-10-30T14:15:25Z")
> [@Rachellelogram](#): > > In terms of babysitting faux pas, this one is pretty low on the list. Tip of the iceberg I say. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/30 "2013-10-30T14:19:11Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Tip of the iceberg I say. Yes. Before you know it Babette will be giving the kids the wrong idea about when next weekend is. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/31 "2013-10-30T14:33:07Z")
> [@The Severed Head of Prof. P](#): > > Ask Crayola. That was my answer. If they’re in my crayon box, they’re “color” enough for me. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/32 "2013-10-30T14:34:50Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Yes. Before you know it Babette will be giving the kids the wrong idea about when next weekend is. Exactly ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/33 "2013-10-30T14:44:01Z")
In the colloquial sense, black and white are colors. That seems to be what we’re discussing here. That may not be the case scientifically, but context is important: if you’re not having a scientific conversation, you don’t have to conform the meaning of your words to scientific definitions. Ditto for conversations that aren’t about law or mathematics or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/34 "2013-10-30T15:13:52Z")
There seems to be an underlying belief here that if a specific, single wavelength does not exist that produces a color, then it’s not a color. [That’s not true.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color#Spectral_colors_and_color_reproduction) So what that white needs many wavelengths? So what that black is the absence of any light? Art teachers are idiots. Besides, they gave me bad grades and crushed my dreams and they suck. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/35 "2013-10-30T15:24:51Z")
> [@The Severed Head of Prof. P](#): > > Yes, unless you’re talking about a technical scientific meaning of the term “color”. For everyday usage, they are both colors. Ask Crayola. This. It’s a matter of which categorization system you use, and in most common, everyday categories, they’re colors. The fact that you have to explain what else they are, instead of giving a one-word statement of what other category they should be sorted into, shows that you’re not using a common category. It’s like asking whether a tomato is a fruit or a vegetable. It can be put in either category, depending on the category system you use. If you’re thinking about what should go into your fruit salad, it’s a vegetable. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/36 "2013-10-30T15:29:16Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > This. It’s a matter of which categorization system you use, and in most common, everyday categories, they’re colors. The fact that you have to explain what else they are, instead of giving a one-word statement of what other category they should be sorted into, shows that you’re not using a common category. > > It’s like asking whether a tomato is a fruit or a vegetable. It can be put in either category, depending on the category system you use. If you’re thinking about what should go into your fruit salad, it’s a vegetable. Well hold on now, doesn’t it make a difference if you pronounce it toe-may-toe or toe-mah-toe? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/37 "2013-10-30T15:34:52Z")
> [@The Severed Head of Prof. P](#): > > Yes, unless you’re talking about a technical scientific meaning of the term “color”. For everyday usage, they are both colors. Ask Crayola. Exactly. If black is the absorption of all colors, then black Crayons would be, er, invisible! ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/38 "2013-10-30T15:43:50Z")
What is black and white and red all over? A nun with a spear through her head. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/39 "2013-10-30T15:52:54Z")
If crayola gives it a crayon, it’s a color. Except for “Flesh”. That creeps everybody out. ---
**Author:** ![raspberry\_hunter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@raspberry\_hunter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raspberry_hunter)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2013, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582/40 "2013-10-30T17:04:11Z")
My daughter informed me that brown “is a shade of orange.” So I think that means she considers it also not a color. Ha. I have to say that I didn’t quibble when Babette was teaching her the months of the year or how to count by 10’s. Babette, I think, likes to teach, and mostly it’s a cool thing. This is the first thing where I’ve been taken aback – perhaps because the other things she’s tried to teach have been sort of unambiguous in how to understand them. (Also, since I have a science background, it bugs the _heck_ out of me when people try to teach science they don’t really understand.) I’m totally fascinated by how everyone has a different answer to this question! I thought it had a straightforward answer, but apparently not. (bup: yeah, that’s my view. Spectral colors != colors.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-black-and-white-are-colors/672582.md?page=3)