Colours in Bengali: word list with pictures
12 words · tap 🔊 to hear each one in Bengali.
| Picture | English | Bengali | Say it | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | লাল | lal | ||
| Yellow | হলুদ | holud | ||
| Blue | নীল | nil | ||
| Green | সবুজ | shobuj | ||
| Orange | কমলা | komla | ||
| Purple | বেগুনি | beguni | ||
| Pink | গোলাপি | golapi | ||
| Brown | বাদামি | badami | ||
| Black | কালো | kalo | ||
| White | সাদা | shada | ||
| Grey | ধূসর | dhushor | ||
| Sky Blue | আকাশি | akashi |
Colours in Bengali are words your child can use all day: choosing a jama (shirt), eating a fruit, painting an alpona. This page teaches 12 colours with clear audio, from লাল (lal, red) and হলুদ (holud, yellow) to আকাশি (akashi, sky blue). Tap a colour to hear it in Bengali and English, then play Find it or Memory. The Bengali word for colour is রং (rong), which is also the picture word for the letter ং on the Bengali alphabet page.
The 12 colours in Bengali, with a memory hook for each
| Colour | Bengali | Say it | Memory hook |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | লাল | lal | sindoor, a red jaba (hibiscus) |
| Yellow | হলুদ | holud | the same word means turmeric |
| Blue | নীল | nil | the sky and the sea |
| Green | সবুজ | shobuj | paddy fields, banana leaves |
| Orange | কমলা | komla | the same word as the fruit |
| Purple | বেগুনি | beguni | named after বেগুন, the brinjal |
| Pink | গোলাপি | golapi | named after গোলাপ, the rose |
| Brown | বাদামি | badami | named after বাদাম, nuts |
| Black | কালো | kalo | a crow, the night |
| White | সাদা | shada | milk, rice, a shiuli flower |
| Grey | ধূসর | dhushor | rain clouds |
| Sky blue | আকাশি | akashi | named after আকাশ, the sky |
Colours named after things
Bengali has a lovely habit: many colour words are made by adding "-i" to a thing. বেগুন (brinjal) becomes বেগুনি (purple), গোলাপ (rose) becomes গোলাপি (pink), বাদাম (nut) becomes বাদামি (brown) and আকাশ (sky) becomes আকাশি (sky blue). Two colours are the thing itself: হলুদ is turmeric and কমলা is orange, the fruit. Show your child the brinjal next to the purple swatch, or the turmeric tin next to yellow, and the word sticks for good. The vegetables in Bengali and fruits in Bengali pages have the brinjal and the orange ready to compare.
Using colours in Bengali sentences
In Bengali the colour comes before the thing, just like English, and it does not change its form. Short phrases your child can say:
- লাল বল (lal bol), red ball
- হলুদ কলা (holud kola), yellow banana
- সবুজ পাতা (shobuj pata), green leaf
- কালো কাক (kalo kak), black crow
To ask, say "এটা কী রং?" (eta ki rong?), "What colour is this?" Ask about a shirt, a flower or a car, and wait for the answer.
Colours in Bengali festivals
Colour is everywhere in Bengali celebrations. During Durga Puja, many women wear white sarees with a red border, লাল পাড় সাদা শাড়ি, and on the last day play with red sindoor. At Pohela Boishakh, red and white fill the streets. On Dol Purnima, and at Basanta Utsav in Shantiniketan, people play with colours to welcome spring. And the white আলপনা (alpona), drawn with rice paste on the floor, is a quiet lesson in সাদা. After the rain, look up for the রামধনু (ramdhonu), the rainbow; in Bangladesh it is often called রংধনু (rongdhonu).
How to teach colours in Bengali to toddlers
- One colour a week. Start with লাল. Find red things all week, then add হলুদ.
- Offer two choices. "লাল না নীল?" (red or blue?) is easier than "which colour?"
- Sort toys or clothes into colour piles, naming each pile in Bangla.
- Colour together on the colouring pages, naming each crayon.
- Dressing game. Hold two shirts: "সবুজ না হলুদ?" Your child chooses and says the colour.
| Age | What to expect |
|---|---|
| 2-3 | Matches same colours; may say one or two colour words, often mixed up. Keep playing. |
| 3-4 | Names 4-6 colours in Bengali, points to the right one when asked |
| 4-5 | Knows all basic colours, uses phrases like লাল ফুল |
Colour names are abstract, so many children mix them up until about 3 or 4. If your child always confuses red and green, mention it to your paediatrician; colour blindness is common in boys and easy to check.
For children learning three languages, the English and Hindi colours name game uses the same 12 colours. Set the language button in the header to Bengali first so the game says লাল before "red". On animals in Bengali, play "find a কালো animal" or "find a সাদা one" and see how many your child spots.
অভিভাবকদের জন্য
রং শেখাতে সপ্তাহে একটা রং যথেষ্ট। এই সপ্তাহে লাল হলে বাড়ির লাল জিনিস খুঁজুন: টমেটো, বল, জবা ফুল।
"এটা কী রং?" জিজ্ঞেস করুন। শিশু ভুল বললে হাসিমুখে ঠিক রংটা বলুন। পুজোয়, পয়লা বৈশাখে বা দোলে প্রতিটি রঙের নাম বলুন।
অনেক রঙের নাম জিনিস থেকে এসেছে: বেগুন থেকে বেগুনি, গোলাপ থেকে গোলাপি, আকাশ থেকে আকাশি। শিশুকে জিনিসটা আর রংটা পাশাপাশি দেখান।
How to use this page at home
Say it, then find it
Play for a few minutes, then look for the same thing away from the screen: bengali words on the shelf, in the kitchen, on the way to school. A child learns a word properly when they meet it twice, once on the screen and once in their hand.
Ten minutes is enough
Short and happy beats long and tired. Stop while your child still wants more, and come back tomorrow: the same page on five short days teaches far more than one long sitting. Nothing here is scored, so there is no reason to push.
Use both languages
Tap the language button at the top to hear the words in your home language first and the second language after. Hearing the same picture named in two languages is one of the few things research agrees builds attention as well as vocabulary.
