tech jargon defined

color wheel spectrumThe Language of Color

Spectrum

Visible spectrum: the distribution of colors produced when light is dispersed by a prism.

Hue

The quality of a color as determined by its dominant wavelength. Includes gradations of different colors. Hue is measured as a location on a color wheel, expressed in degrees.

Saturation

Chromatic purity: freedom from dilution with white and hence vivid in hue

Lightness

How a color reflects light; the relative whiteness or transparency of a color.

Tint

Shade: a quality of a given color that differs slightly from another color; a tinge of any color; variations to a color by adding white.

Computer Colors

RGB-Red, Green, Blue

Print Colors

CMYK-Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black

Source: Wordnet, Princeton University