black

1 of 3

adjective

ˈblak

: having the very dark color of the night sky or the eye's pupil : of the color black (see black entry 2 sense 2)

a black sweater

a black dog

as black as coal

Black or less commonly black

: of or relating to any of various population groups of especially African ancestry often considered as having dark pigmentation of the skin but in fact having a wide range of skin colors

Black Americans

Note: Capitalization of Black in this use is now widely established.

: of or relating to Black people and often especially to African American people or their culture

Black literature

a Black college

Black pride

Black studies

Note: Capitalization of Black in this use is now widely established.

: dressed in black (see black entry 2 sense 2)

playing for the black team

: dirty, soiled

hands black with grime

: characterized by the absence of light

a black night

: reflecting or transmitting little or no light

black water

: served without milk or cream

black coffee

old-fashioned + literary : thoroughly sinister or evil : wicked

When the King heard of this black deed, in his grief and rage he denounced relentless war against his Barons …

Charles Dickens

: indicative of condemnation or discredit

got a black mark for being late

: heavy, serious

the play was a black intrigue

: connected with or invoking the supernatural and especially the devil

black magic

the black arts

: very sad, gloomy, or calamitous

black despair

: marked by the occurrence of disaster

black Friday

: characterized by hostility or angry discontent : sullen

black resentment filled his heart

: distorted or darkened by anger

his face was black with rage

: having dark skin, hair, and eyes

the black Irish

chiefly British : subject to boycott by trade-union members as employing or favoring nonunion workers or as operating under conditions considered unfair by the trade union

a ship that was declared black by the union

of propaganda : conducted so as to appear to originate within an enemy country and designed to weaken enemy morale

Black propaganda … is the business of going to elaborate ends to spread half-true, misleading or downright false information to get your enemy in trouble.

Everett G. Martin

: characterized by or connected with the use of black propaganda

Press reports say that in addition to dropping leaflets over urban areas, messages were broadcast over two "black" radio stations, … both of which were operated by the CIA.

Strategic Intelligence

: characterized by grim, distorted, or grotesque satire

black humor

: of or relating to covert intelligence operations

black government programs

: having a very deep or low register (see register entry 1 sense 4b)

a bass with a black voice

blackish

ˈbla-kish

adjective

blackly adverb

black

2 of 3

noun

: a pigment or dye of the color black : a black pigment or dye

especially : one consisting largely of carbon

: the achromatic (see achromatic sense 3) color of least lightness characteristically perceived to belong to objects that neither reflect nor transmit light

walls painted in black

: something that is black: such as

: black clothing

looks good in black

: a black animal (such as a horse)

baseball : the narrow, black edge of home plate

a pitch on the black [=a pitch that crosses over the very edge of home plate]

Black or less commonly black

: a person belonging to any of various population groups of especially African ancestry often considered as having dark pigmentation of the skin but in fact having a wide range of skin colors

Note: Capitalization of Black in this use is now widely established.

: african american

Note: Capitalization of Black in this use is now widely established.

Note: Use of the noun Black in the singular to refer to a person is considered offensive. The plural form Blacks is still commonly used by Black people and others to refer to Black people as a group or community, but the plural form too is increasingly considered offensive, and most style guides advise writers to use Black people rather than Blacks when practical.

in board games : the pieces of a dark color in a board game for two players (such as chess)

black moves second

: total or nearly total absence of light

the black of night

: the condition of making a profit

—usually used with the

operating in the black

compare red sense 6

black

3 of 3

verb

blacked; blacking; blacks

intransitive verb

: to become black (see black entry 1) : blacken

As she leaned against the stone cross … , the sky blacked with clouds.

Hugh Coleman Davidson

transitive verb

: to make black

blacked his boots

chiefly British : to declare (something, such as a business or industry) subject to boycott by trade-union members

Example Sentences

Adjective we adopted a little black kitten Noun The wall was painted in black. a mixture of grays and blacks She was dressed in black. Verb He blacked his boots with polish. Labor union members have blacked the company. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Keeley was last known to be driving a 2019 black Jeep Wrangler Unlimited.

Chantal Da Silva, NBC News, 2 Dec. 2022 Temporarily switching from orange and black to red, white and blue, Webb, 26, will get his first WBC experience when the international tournament gets under way in March.

John Shea, San Francisco Chronicle, 1 Dec. 2022 Gift one or an entire stack of these beautiful bangles, available in gold, rose gold, silver, or black, with a meaningful message to the godmother of your child.

Annie O'sullivan, Woman's Day, 1 Dec. 2022 Christine Quinn steps out in a black leather outfit paired with a small Chanel purse, jewelry and statement sunglasses in L.A. on Nov. 29.

People Staff, Peoplemag, 1 Dec. 2022 Sayak Subhra Panda, a 28-year-old management consultant, wore a black suit and laced loafers for a meeting recently.

Diti Kohli, BostonGlobe.com, 1 Dec. 2022 Optional features include a panoramic sunroof, heated rear seats, an ambient interior lighting system with 64 different color choices, and black open-pore wood trim.

Drew Dorian, Car and Driver, 1 Dec. 2022 People also eat glutinous rice balls, called Yuánxiāo or Tāngyuán, which are sweet treats with various fillings like black sesame, peanuts, red bean, rose petals and rock sugar.

Minhae Shim Roth, Good Housekeeping, 1 Dec. 2022 Piper, a 16-month-old black lab, survived with severe injuries.

Taylor Hartz, Hartford Courant, 1 Dec. 2022

Noun

The mother-daughter duo also posed for a selfie in at Elios Restaurant, both looking chic in black with Paltrow smiling as Martin gives a little duck face.

Angela Andaloro, Peoplemag, 28 Nov. 2022 Go with the William pajama set in black with white piping for a simple, stylish look.

Vanessa Powell, Men's Health, 23 Nov. 2022 This look was also accompanied by a fuzzy jacket, this time in black.

Aimée Lutkin, ELLE, 12 Nov. 2022 The whole thing is well done without being overdone, in black with stitching and accents in yellow variants Gold Spinneybeck and Alaska Gold.

Sebastian Blanco, Car and Driver, 30 Oct. 2022 The slippers come in black—and the navy that’s shown—and run small.

Danny Perez, Popular Mechanics, 28 Oct. 2022 At the School for Evil, students are all dark-haired and dressed in black.

Olivia Truffaut-wong, refinery29.com, 20 Oct. 2022 Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck were there dressed in black.

Taylor Lorenz, Washington Post, 14 Oct. 2022 The clogs are now sold out in taupe on the Kohl’s website but are still available in black.

Madison Malone Kircher, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2022

Verb

The clip offers the first glimpse of the film’s recreation of the photo, with Smith as Peter revealing his scarred back to a camera as the trailer fades to black.

Ellise Shafer, Variety, 16 Nov. 2022 Before the film fades to black, viewers are taken back to the clearing in the woods, where the minari continues to grow in abundance on a stream of water.

Jessica Wang, EW.com, 22 Sep. 2022 When the pandemic hit the US in March 2020, concert halls fell silent, stages faded to black and livelihoods hung in the balance.

William Deshazer For Cnn, CNN, 7 May 2022 Tate realizes the shell in Kya's notebook is Chase's, and like in the book, throws the shell into the water to hide the evidence before the film fades to black.

Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 16 July 2022 But as the show fades to black, the Byrdes are in surprisingly good shape.

Michael Schneider, Variety, 31 May 2022 Elegantly edited in segments that fade to black as the ice thaws between the siblings, there’s an air of timelessness.

Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2022 The charcoal-gray dial, which fades to black at the rim, has a grainy texture deliberately reminiscent of antique camera cases.

Alex Doak, CNN, 11 Apr. 2022 The video fades to black and the title Harry’s House is revealed.

Izzy Colón, SPIN, 23 Mar. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'black.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Noun, and Verb

Middle English blak, from Old English blæc; akin to Old High German blah black, and probably to Latin flagrare to burn, Greek phlegein

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Time Traveler

The first known use of black was before the 12th century

See more words from the same century

Phrases Containing black

Cite this Entry

Style

“Black.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/black. Accessed 7 Dec. 2022.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

black

1 of 3 adjective

ˈblak

: of the color black

: very dark

often capitalized : of or relating to various peoples having dark skin and especially those of African origin or ancestry

black people

: evil entry 1 sense 1, wicked

a black deed

: very sad or gloomy

the outlook was black

: sullen sense 1a

: characterized by grim or distorted humor

blackish

-ish

adjective

blackly adverb

blackness noun

black

2 of 3 noun

: a black pigment or dye

especially : one consisting largely of carbon

: the characteristic color of soot or coal

: black clothing

dressed in black

: a black animal (as a horse)

: a person belonging to any of various peoples with dark skin and especially one who has African ancestry

: African-American

: absence of light : darkness

the black of night

: the condition of making a profit

in the black

black

3 of 3 verb

: blacken sense 1

Geographical Definition

Black

geographical name

river 101 miles (162 kilometers) long in east central Louisiana flowing south into the Red River

or in China Amo

ˈä-ˈmō

or in Vietnam Da

ˈdä

river 500 miles (805 kilometers) long in southeastern Asia rising in central Yunnan, China, and flowing southeast to the Red River in northern Vietnam