Meaning & use

monochrome

adjective·Academic

Using or containing only one color, or shades of a single color, such as in black-and-white photography.

See it in a sentence

The photographer preferred monochrome images because they emphasized shape and contrast over color.

She decorated the apartment in a monochrome palette of soft grays and whites.

A note on using this word

Monochrome commonly describes black-and-white photography, but technically refers to any single-color scheme, not only black and white.

Words with a similar meaning

black-and-whiteone-color

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

colorfulpolychrome

Another way to use it

2. noun

A picture, design, or photograph produced using only shades of a single color.

The gallery's exhibit featured a striking series of monochromes shot in the 1950s.

Make it your own

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