black
IPA: bɫˈæk
noun
- (countable and uncountable) The colour/color perceived in the absence of light, but also when no light is reflected, but rather absorbed.
- (countable and uncountable) A black dye or pigment.
- (countable) A pen, pencil, crayon, etc., made of black pigment.
- (in the plural) Black cloth hung up at funerals.
- (sometimes capitalised, countable, often offensive) A member of descendant of any of various (African, Aboriginal, etc) ethnic groups which typically have dark pigmentation of the skin. (See usage notes.)
- (informal) Blackness, the condition of belonging to or being descended from one of these ethnic groups.
- (billiards, snooker, pool, countable) The black ball.
- (baseball, countable) The edge of home plate.
- (Britain, countable) A type of firecracker that is really more dark brown in colour.
- (in chess and similar games, countable) The person playing with the black set of pieces.
- (countable) Something, or a part of a thing, which is black.
- (obsolete, countable) A stain; a spot.
- A dark smut fungus, harmful to wheat.
- (US, slang) Marijuana.
- A surname transferred from the nickname.
- A number of places in the United States:
- A town in Geneva County, Alabama.
- An unincorporated community in Edwards County, Illinois.
- A township in Posey County, Indiana; from the surname.
- An unincorporated community in Reynolds County, Missouri.
- A township in Somerset County, Pennsylvania; from the surname.
- An unincorporated community in Mercer County and Wyoming County, West Virginia.
- (informal, countable) Short for blackcurrant, especially (chiefly UK) as syrup or crème de cassis used for cocktails. [A shrub, Ribes nigrum, that produces small, very dark purple, edible berries.]
- Alternative letter-case form of black (“person having dark pigmentation of the skin”). [(countable and uncountable) The colour/color perceived in the absence of light, but also when no light is reflected, but rather absorbed.]
verb
- (transitive) To make black; to blacken.
- (transitive) To apply blacking to (something).
- (Britain, transitive) To boycott, usually as part of an industrial dispute.
adjective
- (of an object) Absorbing all light and reflecting none; dark and hueless.
- (of a place, etc) Without light.
- (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.)
- (US, UK, South Africa) Belonging to or descended from any of various sub-Saharan African ethnic groups which typically have dark pigmentation of the skin.
- (chiefly historical) Designated for use by those ethnic groups (as described above).
- (card games, of a card) Of the spades or clubs suits. Compare red (“of the hearts or diamonds suit”)
- Bad; evil; ill-omened.
- Expressing menace or discontent; threatening; sullen.
- (of objects, markets, etc) Illegitimate, illegal, or disgraced.
- Foul; dirty, soiled.
- (Ireland, informal) Overcrowded.
- (of coffee or tea) Without any cream, milk, or creamer.
- (board games, chess) Of or relating to the playing pieces of a board game deemed to belong to the "black" set (in chess, the set used by the player who moves second) (often regardless of the pieces' actual colour).
- (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”).
- (politics) Related to the Christian Democratic Union of Germany.
- Clandestine; relating to a political, military, or espionage operation or site, the existence or details of which is withheld from the general public.
- Occult; relating to something (such as mystical or magical knowledge) which is unknown to or kept secret from the general public.
- (Ireland, now derogatory) Protestant, often with the implication of being militantly pro-British or anti-Catholic. (Compare blackmouth ("Presbyterian").)
- Having one or more features (hair, fur, armour, clothes, bark, etc.) that is dark (or black).
- (taxonomy, especially) Dark in comparison to another species with the same base name.
- (chiefly Canada, US, often UK) Alternative letter-case form of black (“of or relating to any of various ethnic groups having dark pigmentation of the skin”). [(of an object) Absorbing all light and reflecting none; dark and hueless.]
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Examples of "black" in Sentences
- The eye is red and the beak is black.
- The rest of the gown is black and red.
- It has a piebald black and white coat.
- The eyes are black and the beak is red.
- Achromatic means black and white to me.
- The wings are black with a sheen of blue.
- The belly is smooth and mottled black and white.
- The crown is red in the male and black in the female.
- The mix of red, black, blue, and purple was disconcerting.
- Pitchy black doors with red bricks and white windows are always classic and elegant.
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