What is Gamut?
Also known as: Color gamut
The complete range of colors a device or color space can reproduce. sRGB, AdobeRGB, ProPhoto RGB, CMYK, and Pantone all have different gamuts. Textile work hits gamut limits regularly.
In detail
Gamut defines what a device or system can produce. The visible color spectrum is the maximum gamut; every device covers some subset. sRGB (the standard monitor space) covers ~35% of the visible spectrum. AdobeRGB extends sRGB by ~25% in greens and cyans. ProPhoto RGB covers most of the visible gamut but exceeds what any monitor can display. CMYK printing covers ~70% of sRGB — colors outside CMYK (vibrant oranges, deep reds, electric blues) cannot be reproduced via overprint. Pantone TCX covers the textile gamut on cotton; gamuts differ on silk, polyester, wool. Understanding gamut limits prevents designers from working in colors that look great on screen but are unreproducible on the destination fabric.
Example
A designer creates a vibrant teal in AdobeRGB on a wide-gamut monitor. CMYK conversion clips it to a duller cyan-green; the printed fabric matches the dulled version. The design would have shipped with a color the print partner cannot reproduce — caught at proof stage if checked, shipped wrong if not.