Definition: Black

Etymology

From Middle English blak, black, blake, from Old English blæc (black, dark, ink), from Proto-West Germanic *blak, from Proto-Germanic *blakaz (burnt) (compare Dutch blaken (to burn), Low German blak, black (blackness, black paint, black ink), Old High German blah (black)), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *bʰleg- (to burn, shine) (compare Latin flagrāre (to burn), Ancient Greek φλόξ or phlóx (flame), Sanskrit भर्ग or bharga (radiance)).

Adjective

black (comparative blacker or more black, superlative blackest or most black)

(of an object) Absorbing all light and reflecting none; dark and hueless.
I often wear my black sweatshirt in the winter.
(of a place, etc) Without light.
The cave was pitch black.
(sometimes capitalized) Belonging to or descended from any of various (African, Aboriginal, etc) ethnic groups which typically have dark pigmentation of the skin. (See usage notes below.)
1. Belonging to or descended from any of various sub-Saharan African ethnic groups which typically have dark pigmentation of the skin.
(historical) Designated for use by those ethnic groups (as described above).
In the days of racial segregation, there were separate white and black schools.
(card games, of a card) Of the spades or clubs suits. Compare red (of the hearts or diamonds suit)
I was dealt two red queens, and he got one of the black queens.
Expressing menace, or discontent; threatening; sullen.
He shot her a black look.
(of objects, markets, etc) Illegitimate, illegal or disgraced.
I know a lot of people who refuse to use Bitcoin simply because it has been used in black market purchases. Well, so has more traditional currency!
Foul; dirty, soiled.
(of coffee or tea) Without any cream, milk or creamer.
Jim drinks his coffee black, but Ellen prefers it with creamer.
(chess) Of or relating to the playing pieces of a board game deemed to belong to the "black" set; the set used by the player who moves second (often regardless of the pieces' actual color).
The black pieces in this chess set are made of dark blue glass.
(politics) Anarchist; of or pertaining to anarchism.
(typography) Said of a symbol or character that is solid, filled with color. Compare white (said of a character or symbol outline, not filled with color).

Compare two Unicode symbols: ☞ = "WHITE RIGHT POINTING INDEX"; ☛ = "BLACK RIGHT POINTING INDEX"

(politics) Related to the Christian Democratic Union of Germany.
After the election, the parties united in a black-yellow alliance.
Clandestine; relating to a political, military, or espionage operation or site, the existence or details of which is withheld from the general public.
5 percent of the Defense Department funding will go to black projects.
Occult; relating to something (such as mystical or magical knowledge) which is unknown to or kept secret from the general public.
She secretly practices black magic.
Having one or more features (hair, fur, armor, clothes, bark, etc) that is dark (or black); in taxonomy, especially: dark in comparison to another species with the same base name.
Black birch, black locust, black rhino.

Usage notes

In the United States, black typically refers to people of African descent, including indirect African descent via the Caribbean, and including those with light skin. In Australia, Aboriginal Australians are often referred to as or identify as black. In New Zealand, Maori people are sometimes referred to as or identify as black.

Some style guides recommend capitalizing Black in reference to the racial group, while others advise using lowercase (black); lowercase is more common.

Derived terms

American black bear
Asian black bear
black abalone
black and blue
black and white
black and white warbler
Black Angus
black ash
black bean
black bear
black beetle
black belt
blackboard
black box
black caiman
black caraway
black cardamom
black carp
black cat
black cherry
Black Country
black coral
black cumin
blackcurrant
Black Death
black eye
black-eyed bean
black-eyed pea
black-eyed Susan
black fax
blackfly
Black Forest
Black Friday
black garlic
black goose
blackgrass
black grouse
blackhead
black hole
black horse
black house spider
blackjack
blacklist
black locust
blackmail
black maple
black market
black moss
black moth
black-necked crane
black nightshade
black oak
black olive
black panther
black pepper
black pine
black poplar
black radish
black raspberry
black rat
black rhinoceros
black rice
black sage
black salmon
black slug
blacksmith
black snake
black spruce
black swan
black walnut
black widow
black willow
blackwood
code black
pitch black

Related terms

blackberry
blackbird
blacken

Noun

black (countable and uncountable, plural blacks)

The color perceived in the absence of light, but also when no light is reflected, but rather absorbed.
I picked black from the list of colors, and my colleague picked blue, so we held a vote on what color to make the text of the website.
A black dye or pigment.
A pen, pencil, crayon, etc., made of black pigment.
(in the plural) Black cloth hung up at funerals.
(billiards, snooker, pool) The black ball.
(baseball) The edge of home plate.
(in chess and similar games) The person playing with the black set of pieces.
At this point black makes a disastrous move.
Something, or a part of a thing, which is black.
A dark smut fungus, harmful to wheat.

Verb

black (third-person singular simple present blacks, present participle blacking, simple past and past participle blacked)

To make black; to blacken.
To apply blacking to (something).

Derived terms

black out
blackout

Credits

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black ^history