Color Meaning: Meaning of The Color Brown

This post is part of the Color Meaning Blog Series, detailing the meanings associated with colors such as red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, grey, black, white, brown, pink, turquoise, gold, silver, and beige.

Brown, the color of earth, wood, stone, wholesomeness, reliability, elegance, security, healing, home, grounding, foundations, stability, warmth, and honesty, is a natural, neutral color that is typically associated with the seasons of fall and winter.

The color brown is a warm color that stimulates the appetite. While it is sometimes considered dull, it also represents steadfastness, simplicity, friendliness, dependability, and health.

Shades of brown when combined with green create a palette often used to convey concepts of recycling, earth-friendly, or all natural. Dark brown can be used in place of black and brings warmth to color palettes.

The brown color says stability, reliability, dependability, and approachability. It is the color of our soil, growth, fertility, and earth, and it is associated the concepts of “all natural” and “organic.” Brown is the color of the Earth and is comforting and nurturing.

The color brown affects the mind and body by creating feelings of wholesomeness, stability, and peace. Brown provides feelings of organization, history, and connection, as well as cozy feelings of relaxation and warmth.

Brown is believed to help create a wholesome feeling, a connection with the earth, and a sense of orderliness and convention. Brown is a stable and grounded color that is believed to help you feel like you fit in and belong.

Other meanings associated with the color brown:

• The term “brown bottle” refers to a bottle of beer.
• To “brown” something is to cook or burn it.
• The saying “brown-nose” refers to someone who sucks up, or kisses butt to someone of authority.
• The phrase “brown study” is used to describe someone who is aloof, indifferent.
• The expression “brown out” refers to a partial loss of service.

Additional words that represent different shades, tints, and values of the color brown: sienna, bay, sand, wood, dapple, auburn, chestnut, nut-brown, cinnamon, russet, tawny, chocolate, tan, brunette, fawn, liver-colored, mahogany, oak, bronze, terra-cotta, toast, umber, cocoa, coffee, copper, ecru, ginger, hazel, khaki, ochre, puce, snuff-colored.