Inspiration in the color lime.
Learn the history and meaning of the color lime, a vivid shade of green as tart as its namesake.
How to use the color lime.
The color lime in fashion and décor.
All lime in moderation.
Lime color compared with other bright shades of green.
Combine lime with other colors.
Information about lime color.
The lime HEX code picker is #32CD32. This is the vivid green made even brighter with a heavy dose of yellow.
The color lime can be achieved in an RGB space with 50 red, 205 green, and 5 blue. Lime color can be achieved in a CMYK color space with 76% cyan, 0% magenta, 76% yellow, and 20% black.
What is the meaning of the color lime?
Lime color is a vivid shade of green brightened with yellow that was named after the tart green citrus fruit. The color lime shares many qualities with its namesake. Lime color invigorates and inspires action, and this vivid shade of green adds freshness and positivity to (almost) any project.
The color lime is a vivid green made brighter with a dose of yellow. This citrus-inspired color is tied to growth and renewal.
The history of lime color.
The history of the color lime is filled with symbolism.
Lime color first occurred in nature, from its namesake fruit to the skins of countless amphibians and in endless foliage. From ancient civilizations to modern day, the bright color lime has captured the imaginations of artists, designers, and even architects. By the Middle Ages, the color lime was synonymous with hope and faith due to its ties to life and renewal. That carried over to the Holy Trinity and the Holy Spirit, where lime color was used to represent power and the divine.
Lime color in the English language.
The word “lime” was first introduced into English in the 1630s as the green-yellow citrus fruit. The name came from lima in Spanish, which technically refers to what in English is called a “lemon.” The Spanish name was adopted from a Persian word (limun) that referred to a Persian lime, which is a hybrid of the key lime and the lemon. The color lime was first introduced as a color word as “lime green” in English in 1883.
Use of lime color in the 20th and 21st century.
After the Impressionists played with surreal shades like lime color in works like Vincent van Gogh’s Café Terrace, the color lime made it into fashion. Bright lime color and other vivid greens were most popular in the 1960s. After natural hues kicked that psychedelic look to the curb, the color lime didn’t come back until the 2000s. The color lime then became a popular aesthetic in modern palettes used by brands like Crocs, Song Airlines, and the Seattle Seahawks.
The color lime across different cultures.
Lime color in psychology.
The color lime can be found in leaves filtering sunshine, green grass, and the plumage of exotic birds. For obvious reasons, lime color has become strongly tied to renewal and the rapid growth seen in youth. Other greens like forest green are more associated with deeper aspects of nature, but lime green does occur in the natural world, too. The color lime also represents youth and inexperience.
The color lime in antiquity.
Well before lime color took its name, this bright shade of green still had cultural connotations. In Ancient Egypt, for example, the color lime was considered a symbol of rebirth, strength, and health.
The outlier: lime color in toxicity.
Beyond the positive meanings of the color lime, this vivid green also has one negative connotation. Like so many exotic plants, frogs, or salamanders that warn you of their toxicity with their lime coloring, or the villains in animated movies who are depicted with lime color as a sign of their evil, lime can mean “poison.” Look to the Evil Queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs or Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty. Toxic poisons in film are also depicted with the color lime.