Language and Culture

to the above comparison and analysis, we can see that there are distinct differences between the color words in Chinese and English. Sometimes, Chinese may not use the color words when they are used in English expressions and vice versa. Let us see a few examples containing the Chinese character－红.

红人�a favorite with somebody in power

红榜�honor roll

红利�bonus; extra dividend

红运�good luck

红光满面�one’s face glowing with health

脸红�blush

红茶�black tea

红绿灯�traffic light

I believe the above-mentioned examples amply illustrate the point. On many occasions, it is not the basic meaning of the color that functions, but the profound cultural associations related to the color that functions. That is to say, the differences in using color words between Chinese and English stand out when the color words themselves don’t play an important part. Two factors may help to illustrate. First is the language itself. There are many differences in the characteristics of both languages. English words are characterized by flexibility. One word is likely to have different meanings in different contexts. Comparatively speaking, the meaning of Chinese words remains fixed. Chinese is featured by standard, rigor and preciseness in choosing the words. Let’s take the word green for example. Green gains certain new meaning when associated with the phrase green revolution and when it is used alone, it still carries that meaning. However, green in Chinese will lose the

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