A photograph of a sign in grayscale

The same photograph in black and white

Monochrome comes from the two Greek words mono (μωνο, meaning "one"), and chroma (χρωμα, meaning "surface" or "the color of the skin"). A monochromatic object has a single color. A Neighborhood Watch notice sign in grayscale File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... A Neighborhood Watch notice sign in grayscale File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... A Neighborhood Watch notice sign in monochrome black and white File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... A Neighborhood Watch notice sign in monochrome black and white File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Color is an important part of the visual arts. ...

In physics, the word is used more generally to refer to electromagnetic radiation of a single wavelength. In the physical sense, no real source of electromagnetic radiation is purely monochromatic, since that would require a wave of infinite duration. Even sources such as lasers have some narrow range of wavelengths (known as the linewidth or bandwidth of the source) within which they operate. Physics (Greek: (phúsis), nature and (phusiké), knowledge of nature) is the science concerned with the discovery and understanding of the fundamental laws which govern matter, energy, space, and time and explaining them using mathematics. ... Electromagnetic radiation can be imagined as a self-propagating transverse oscillating wave of electric and magnetic fields. ... The wavelength is the distance between repeating units of a wave pattern. ... This article is about waves in the most general scientific sense. ... For other uses, see Laser (disambiguation). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

For an image, the term monochrome is usually taken to mean the same as black-and-white or, more likely, grayscale, but may also be used to refer to other combinations containing only two colors, such as green-and-white or green-and-black. It may also refer to sepia or cyanotype images. In computing, monochrome has two meanings: In common usage, an image (from Latin imago) or picture is an artifact that reproduces the likeness of some subject—usually a physical object or a person. ... Black-and-white or black and white) can refer to a general term used in photography, film, and other media (see black-and-white). ... In computing, a grayscale or greyscale digital image is an image in which the value of each pixel is a single sample. ... Sepia tone is a type of monochrome photographic image in which the picture appears in shades of brown as opposed to greyscale as in a black-and-white image. ... Cyanotype is an old monochrome photographic printing process that gives a cyan-blue print. ...

• it may mean having only one color which is either on or off,
• allowing shades of that color, although the latter is more correctly known as grayscale.

A monochrome computer display is capable of displaying only a single color, often green, amber, red or white, and often also shades of that color. In computing, a grayscale or greyscale digital image is an image in which the value of each pixel is a single sample. ... A monitor is an interface between the computer and the operator. ... Mossy, green fountain in Wattens, Austria. ... Amber is an orange-yellow color that got its name for the material known as an amber. ... Red may be any of a number of similar colours at the lowest frequencies of light discernible by the human eye. ... White rose. ...

The monochromatic scheme should be used with caution when designing a space. Certain monochromatic color concepts will appear rather monotonous, and some variety in the intensities, textures and forms should be used to give life to the interior.

See also

Look up monochrome in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Monochromacy
• Selective color – a post-processing technique involving monochrome images.