gray; ash gray; grizzly; pessimistic; gloomy; dispirited; ambiguous
灰 (huī) · 6 strokes
Depicts a hand (又) picking ashes left over from a fire (火).
色 (sè) · 6 strokes
Depicts a kneeling person (卩) being pushed down by a hand (爪). Based on the original meaning "press down", now written as 抑. The current meaning "color" is a phonetic loan.