Home › Hobbies, Crafts & Leisure › Photography & Cameras › monochrome

monochrome

MON-uh-krohm /ˈmɒnəˌkroʊm/

nounadjectiveB2SATTOEFL

artisticacademic

An image created using only a single color or shades of a single color, most commonly black and white.

While often used interchangeably with 'black and white', monochrome technically includes any single-color toning, such as sepia (brown) or cyanotype (blue).

The story behind the word. The word 'monochrome' is constructed from two Greek roots: 'monos', meaning 'single' or 'alone', and 'chroma', meaning 'color'. It was originally used in the 17th century to describe paintings executed in a single color. When photography was invented in the 19th century, all early images were naturally monochrome (first metallic silver-grey, then sepia), making the term a foundational concept of the medium.

Word relationships

grayscale: 'Grayscale' refers strictly to shades of gray between black and white, whereas 'monochrome' can be shades of any single color (like blue or brown).
black-and-white: 'Black-and-white' is a specific, common type of monochrome, whereas 'monochrome' is the broader technical category.

polychrome: 'Polychrome' refers to works executed in many colors, the direct opposite of monochrome's single-color constraint.
color: 'Color' photography utilizes the full spectrum of visible light, whereas monochrome restricts it to a single hue.

Commonly confused with

desaturated: Desaturated images have had their color intensity reduced but may still contain multiple distinct hues; monochrome contains only one hue.

Word family

monochromatic (adjective): Having or consisting of only one color.
monochromatically (adverb): In a monochromatic manner.

Collocations

monochrome image
monochrome print
monochrome sensor
monochrome photography

Example sentences

"By stripping away the distraction of color, monochrome photography forces the viewer to focus entirely on texture and shadow." An essay on the emotional impact of black-and-white photography.

Memory hook

Mono means one (like a monologue), and chrome means color (like Google Chrome). Monochrome is one color. Monochrome is one color.

When not to use

Do not use 'monochrome' to describe an image that has even a small splash of a second, contrasting color (which is 'selective color').

Fun facts

Some high-end digital cameras, like the Leica M Monochrom, are built with dedicated sensors that completely lack color filters, allowing them to capture incredibly sharp black-and-white images with unmatched detail.

Related words

composition, focus, exposure

Explore more words

monotony, monoculture, monograph, somber, monolingual, matte