グレー
ぐれー
noun
gray; grey
1.
gray; grey
The color gray. Used for literal colors of objects and clothing.
グレーのスーツを着る。
To wear a gray suit.
壁をグレーに塗り替えた。
I repainted the wall gray.
薄いグレーと濃いグレー、どちらが好きですか。
Which do you prefer, light gray or dark gray?
2.
gray area; ambiguous; dubious
Something that is not clearly black or white — morally ambiguous, legally questionable, or uncertain.
それはグレーゾーンだ。
That's a gray area.
法律的にはグレーな取引だ。
It's a legally gray transaction.
あの会社のやり方はグレーだと言われている。
That company's methods are said to be dubious.
A loanword from English "gray/grey." As a color term, グレー is the standard modern loanword and is more common than the native 灰色 in fashion and design contexts. The figurative sense of moral or legal ambiguity is very productive in modern Japanese.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- グレーゾーン: gray zone, gray area
- 濃いグレー: dark gray
- 薄いグレー: light gray
- グレーな部分: gray/ambiguous part
- チャコールグレー: charcoal gray
- ライトグレー: light gray
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 灰色: gray — the native Japanese word; used more in literature and traditional descriptions
- 鼠色: mouse gray — a traditional Japanese color name with a slightly warm tone
NOTE:
In the figurative sense, グレー often implies something that is technically not illegal but ethically questionable — stronger than simply "unclear."