show one's true colours

A form of show one's true colors — To reveal how one really is, as opposed to how one has been portrayed or after having been deceptively and deliberately misleading.

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Meanings

verbshow one's true colours (third-person singular simple present shows one's true colours, present participle showing one's true colours, simple past showed one's true colours, past participle shown one's true colours)

present singular third person shows one's true colours · participle present showing one's true colours · past showed one's true colours · participle past shown one's true colours

  1. alternativeAlternative spelling of show one's true colors.
Cite this entry
APA

show one's true colours. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/show%20one's%20true%20colours

MLA

“show one's true colours.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/show%20one's%20true%20colours. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “show one's true colours,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/show%20one's%20true%20colours.

Source: show one's true colours on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.