Palette, pallet or palate?
Palette, pallet and palate sound the same but mean different things. For colors, the word is always palette. "Pallette", with a double l and a double t, is a common misspelling and is not in standard dictionaries.
What each word means
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Palette | A range of colors, or the board a painter mixes paint on. Also a set of makeup shades. | The brand palette is navy, sand and coral. |
| Pallet | A flat wooden or plastic platform for moving goods with a forklift. Also an old word for a simple straw bed. | The boxes arrived on a pallet. |
| Palate | The roof of the mouth, and by extension a sense of taste. | The wine suits a refined palate. |
| Pallette | Not a standard word. Usually a misspelling of palette. | Write "color palette", not "color pallette". |
How to remember the difference
- Palette ends in -ette, like other small French things (cigarette, kitchenette): a small board of colors. The word comes from the French palette, a small shovel or blade, from the Latin pala, a spade.
- Pallet has the double l of "lift": it is what a forklift lifts.
- Palate holds "ate": it is in your mouth, where you taste what you ate. It comes from the Latin palatum, the roof of the mouth.
So a designer chooses a color palette, a warehouse ships a pallet, and a chef pleases your palate.
The other meanings of palette
- A painter’s palette: the flat board, often with a thumb hole, on which an artist lays out and mixes paint. The colors an artist favors are called their palette too.
- A makeup palette: a case of eyeshadows, blushes or concealers in coordinated shades.
- A software palette: a panel of tools or colors in an app, such as the Swatches palette in Photoshop or a command palette in a code editor.
- A figure of speech: a range of anything, such as a palette of flavors, sounds or ideas. (A chef pleases your palate, but may cook with a palette of spices.)
In every one of these senses the spelling is palette. Only the shipping platform is a pallet, and only the roof of the mouth is a palate.
What is a color palette?
A color palette is a small set of colors chosen to work together, usually three to six, used across a design, a brand, a room or an outfit. A good palette has a mix of light and dark values so text stays readable, one or two main colors, and an accent for emphasis. Designers write palettes as hex codes, such as #1D3557, so the colors stay exact everywhere.
Most palettes follow a color harmony, a pattern on the color wheel. Four common types:
- MonochromaticLight to dark versions of one hue.
- AnalogousNeighbors on the color wheel.
- ComplementaryOpposites, with neutrals between.
- NeutralSoft whites, sand and stone.
Read more about monochromatic, analogous and complementary colors, browse hundreds of color palettes, or make your own in the palette generator.
Frequently asked questions
Is it color palette or color pallet?
Color palette. A pallet is a platform for shipping goods, and a palate is the roof of your mouth.
Is pallette a word?
No. Pallette is not in standard English dictionaries. It is usually a misspelling of palette.
How do you pronounce palette?
PAL-it, with the stress on the first syllable. Palette, pallet and palate are all pronounced the same way in English.
What is a color palette?
A small set of colors chosen to work together, usually three to six, used across a design, brand, room or outfit.