Synonyms of shades

shades 1 of 2

noun

plural of shade

1

as in colors

a property that becomes apparent when light falls on an object and by which things that are identical in form can be distinguished

a lovely shade of blue

Synonyms & Similar Words

• colors
• hues
• tones
• tints
• colorations
• tinges
• tinctures
• colorings
• contrasts
• casts
• undertones
• overtones
• primary colors
• values
• saturations
• pigmentations
• secondary colors
• chromas
• chromaticities
• tertiary colors
• colorways

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• achromatisms

2

as in splashes

a very small amount

just a shade taller than his dance partner

Synonyms & Similar Words

• splashes
• specks
• glimmers
• sprinklings
• hints
• touches
• bits
• little
• shadows
• licks
• particles
• dabs
• traces
• flecks
• rays
• sparks
• streaks
• handfuls
• ounces
• smells
• slivers
• drams
• spots
• spatters
• shreds
• crumbs
• nips
• peanuts
• bites
• smacks
• scruples
• soupçons
• strains
• dashes
• suspicions
• mites
• scintillas
• parts
• driblets
• drops
• smidgens
• snaps
• molecules
• pinches
• aces
• skoshes
• drops in the bucket
• grains
• patches
• tastes
• dots
• atoms
• syllables
• doses
• granules
• portions
• sections
• semblances
• vestiges
• minima
• fragments
• scraps
• minims
• motes
• whits
• nibbles
• nubbins
• smatterings
• morsels
• chips
• modicums
• iotas
• jots
• flakes
• shards
• flyspecks
• scatterings
• hoots
• splinters
• tittles
• shivers
• shavings
• clippings
• smatters
• parings
• tatters
• smithereens
• shots

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• masses
• quantities
• loads
• mountains
• barrels
• buckets
• piles
• bundles
• bushels
• lots
• stacks
• deals
• heaps
• rafts
• abundances
• volumes
• reams
• gobs
• pecks
• fistfuls
• scads
• oodles
• wads
• wealths
• boatloads
• messes
• lashings
• profusions
• much
• potfuls
• excesses
• plenties
• passels
• slabs
• surpluses
• overflows
• chunks
• embarrassments
• superfluities
• bonanzas
• overages
• hunks
• lumps
• overmuch
• overabundances
• surfeits
• oversupplies
• overkills
• superabundances

3

as in spirits

the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people

spirits and shades haunting the night

Synonyms & Similar Words

• spirits
• shadows
• apparitions
• ghosts
• visions
• phantoms
• wraiths
• haunts
• specters
• vampires
• materializations
• familiar spirits
• phantasms
• sprites
• zombies
• spooks
• poltergeists
• demons
• visitants
• bogeys
• angels
• hants
• genies
• doubles
• daimones
• ghouls
• jinn
• manes
• familiars
• fetches
• doppelgängers
• shaitans
• succubi
• incubi
• geniuses
• devils
• lemures
• imps
• lamiae
• cacodemons
• fiends

shades

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of shade

as in shadows

to shelter (something) from light and heat

the trees shaded us quite nicely from the noonday sun

Synonyms & Similar Words

• shadows
• protects
• covers
• clouds
• dims
• darkens
• overshadows
• dulls
• overcasts
• screens
• canopies

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• lights
• illuminates
• exposes
• lightens

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of shades

Noun

As for the colors and prints that embrace this design, monochromatic trousers are the most popular—in shades like khaki, camel or sand—and plain designs, though pinstripes also work as the sole print. —Tatiana Ojea, Glamour, 8 Mar. 2026

Fruit Salad To keep things chic and simple, opt for a neutral base and ask for cherry, strawberry, orange, and blueberry designs in muted shades, with pale green stems to keep the look fun but not too outré. —Audrey Noble, Vogue, 8 Mar. 2026

The shades du jour are meant to be much more flattering on your own natural lip color tone, such as rose pinks, dusty mauves (like the famed Pillow Talk), and rich berries. —Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 7 Mar. 2026

From the '60s to the '80s, shades like avocado green, emerald, navy, and even bright turquoise were all the rage. —Marisa Suzanne Martin, The Spruce, 7 Mar. 2026

Note the similar blush shades in the curtains and bedspread, and the sharper shocks of pink in the art. —Giada Storelli, Architectural Digest, 7 Mar. 2026

While a few shades lighter than dark green, these bright Kelly green nails keep it simple with a white circle dotted with a smaller gold metal accent at the base. —Kara Jillian Brown, InStyle, 7 Mar. 2026

Dark shades like black or gray conceal dirt and stains. —Beth Livesay, AJC.com, 6 Mar. 2026

The shimmery eyes are a combination of the brand’s Wondercolour Longwear Cream Eyeshadow Stick in shades Cream Fresca, Little Star, Brazilionaire, and Umber One, topped off by Lashify Stardust Gossamer lashes, while the glossy lip was achieved with Wondergloss Collagen Lip Oil in Spicy Pink. —Marci Robin, Allure, 2 Mar. 2026

Verb

Basil shades the ground around tomatoes, conserving soil moisture. —Joshua Siskin, Oc Register, 27 Feb. 2026

New Zealand actor Shand shades him with welcome nuance. —Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 20 Feb. 2026

The skin tone shades work as a complexion product or a powder, while the universal shades can be used to prep the skin. —Essence Wiley, InStyle, 7 Feb. 2026

Tall grass also shades weed seedlings, preventing them from expanding and overtaking desirable grass plants, better than short turf. —Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 19 Oct. 2025

The jersey has Sacramento emblazoned across the chest with a new palette of deep ink purple and bright violet accents, shades the team has never used before. —Jason Anderson, Sacbee.com, 17 Sep. 2025

But Slate also shades Nikki with such specific nuances, anxieties, and sadnesses that, even with a performance as powerful as Williams’s at its center, the show develops into a two-hander, something of a love story between the pair. —Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 27 Aug. 2025