In optics, transparency is the material property of allowing light to pass through. In mineralogy, another term for this property is iaphaneity. The opposite property is opacity. Transparent materials are clear: they can be seen through. Translucent materials allow light to pass through them only diffusely: they cannot be seen through; contrary to popular belief, translucency does not include see-through colored objects such as (for instance) emerald in its cut state (which is transparent) but does include things such as frosted glass which allow light to come through but no images.