Meanings
alternative rose-coloured glasses · alternative rose-tinted glasses · alternative rose-colored lenses · alternative UK rose-coloured spectacles · alternative UK rose-tinted spectacles
- USidiomaticpluralplural onlyA cognitive or perceptual bias where an individual views something in an overly optimistic or positive light, often failing to recognize its negative aspects.
Such captivating beauty corresponds to our protagonist’s naive idealism, and the rose-colored glasses through which he views an upper-crust world of dandies and refined intellectuals.
2020 October 13, Beatrice Loayza, “Jack London gets an Italian makeover in the tragic and romantic Martin Eden”, in AV Club - USpluralplural onlyUsed other than figuratively or idiomatically: see rose-colored, glasses.
Synonyms & antonyms
Origin
Phrase appears as early as 1830 according to OED. From rose-color or rose-colored (meaning "pleasant"), from the notion that roses are widely regarded as uncommonly beautiful.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan ulleres violetes
- ulleres violetesoverly optimistic perception of something
Chinese Mandarin 濾鏡 /滤镜
- 濾鏡 /滤镜 (lǜjìng)overly optimistic perception of something
Czech růžové brýle
- růžové brýleoverly optimistic perception of something
Danish rose bril
- rose briloverly optimistic perception of something
Estonian roosad prillid
- roosad prillidoverly optimistic perception of something
Finnish ruusunpunaiset silmälasit
- ruusunpunaiset silmälasitoverly optimistic perception of something
French lunettes roses, voir la vie en rose
- lunettes rosesoverly optimistic perception of something
- voir la vie en roseoverly optimistic perception of something
German rosarote Brille
- rosarote Brilleoverly optimistic perception of something
Irish spéaclaí bándearg
- spéaclaí bándeargoverly optimistic perception of something
Italian gli occhi di un bambino, occhi di bambino
- gli occhi di un bambinooverly optimistic perception of something
- occhi di bambinooverly optimistic perception of something
Japanese 色眼鏡
- 色眼鏡 (iro megane)overly optimistic perception of something
Māori te paki o Hewa
- te paki o Hewaoverly optimistic perception of something
Polish różowe okulary
- różowe okularyoverly optimistic perception of something
Russian ро́зовые очки́
- ро́зовые очки́ (rózovyje očkí)overly optimistic perception of something
Scottish Gaelic speuclairean bàn-dhearg, speuclairean pinc
- speuclairean bàn-dheargoverly optimistic perception of something
- speuclairean pincoverly optimistic perception of something
Swedish (se något i/genom) ett rosa skimmer
- (se något i/genom) ett rosa skimmeroverly optimistic perception of something
Turkish dünyayı tozpembe görmek
- dünyayı tozpembe görmekoverly optimistic perception of something
Ukrainian роже́ві окуля́ри
- роже́ві окуля́ри (rožévi okuljáry)overly optimistic perception of something
Welsh sbectol-lliw rhosyn
- sbectol-lliw rhosynoverly optimistic perception of something
Cite this entry
rose-colored glasses. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/rose-colored%20glasses
“rose-colored glasses.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/rose-colored%20glasses. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “rose-colored glasses,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/rose-colored%20glasses.
Source: rose-colored glasses on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.