chrominance

chrominance [kroh-muh-nuh ns] Word Origin noun Optics.

1. the difference in color quality between a color and a reference color that has an equal brightness and a specified chromaticity.

Origin of chrominance First recorded in 1950–55; chrom- + (lum)inance British Dictionary definitions for chrominance chrominance noun

1. the quality of light that causes the sensation of colour. It is determined by comparison with a reference source of the same brightness and of known chromaticity
2. the information that defines the colour (hue and saturation) of a television image, but not the brightness

Word Origin for chrominance C20: from chromo- + luminance