i-adjective
The basic color adjective, used for objects, light-colored surfaces, skin, hair, clothing, and similar concrete things.
壁を白く塗った。
I painted the wall white.
彼女は白いシャツを着ている。
She is wearing a white shirt.
i-adjective
Used when a surface such as paper, a field, a map, or a coloring-book area has nothing written, colored, or marked on it; often close to 'left blank' or 'still untouched.'
塗り絵の空はまだ白い。
The sky in the coloring book is still uncolored.
この欄は白いままで提出してもかまいません。
You may submit this field left blank.
i-adjective
innocent; not guilty; pure; spotless
Figurative use based on whiteness as lack of stain: morally pure, clean, or not implicated in wrongdoing. In suspicion or investigation contexts, 白い means closer to 'innocent' or 'not guilty,' often in phrases such as 限りなく白い.
証拠を見る限り、彼は限りなく白い。
Judging from the evidence, he is almost certainly innocent.
子どもの白い心を大切にしたい。
I want to cherish the purity of a child's heart.
i-adjective
Archaic use meaning bright or vivid rather than simply white. In modern Japanese, 明るい or 鮮やか is normally used for this meaning.
古語では「白い」が明るい・鮮やかな様子を表すことがある。
In classical usage, 白い can describe something as bright or vivid.
i-adjective
inexperienced; naive; unrefined
Archaic figurative use for someone inexperienced, naive, or not yet polished. Modern Japanese normally uses words such as 未熟, 世間知らず, or 垢抜けない.
古い用法では「白い」が未熟で世慣れないことを指す場合がある。
In older usage, 白い can refer to being inexperienced and naive.