black

BLAK/blæk/

Noun pluralblacks

37 meanings of black

Practice

1
having that coloradjective
Of the darkest color, like coal or the night sky.
She wore a black dress to the party.
The cat's fur was so black it seemed to disappear in the shadows.
Similarjet, ebony, inky, pitch-black
Oppositewhite
2
racial groupadjective
Having family from Africa south of the Sahara, or in some countries from other dark-skinned groups, such as Aboriginal Australians.
Black voters played a big part in the city election.
Many black families in London trace their roots to Nigeria and Ghana.
UsageSay Black people or Black history.
Note
3
nouncountable or uncountable
The darkest color, like the color of coal or a night sky without stars.
She always dresses in black for work.
Black is my favorite color for cars.
UsageSay dressed in black.
Similarblackness
Oppositewhiteness
Note
4
nounoffensivecountable
An often insulting word for a person whose family comes from Africa or another group with dark skin.
The old newspaper called him 'a black,' a word most people now find offensive.
Signs at the train station kept blacks and whites in separate waiting rooms.
UsageSay Black people or a Black woman.
Note
5
illicitadjective
Against the law or not allowed, or seen as shameful.
During the war, people bought sugar on the black market.
The company hid its black money in foreign banks.
UsageSay you bought it on the black market.
Similarillicit, illegal, underground
Oppositelegal, legitimate
Note
6
no lightadjective
Completely dark because there is no light at all.
Like being deep inside a cave with no flashlight.
The room was black after the power went out.
We walked home on a black night with no moon.
Similardark, gloomy, murky, dusky
Oppositebright, lit, illuminated
7
grim humoradjective
Making jokes about death or other sad, frightening or unpleasant subjects.
The nurses used black humor to get through the long night shifts.
The movie is a black comedy about a family fighting over a funeral.
UsageSay black humor or dark humor.
Similardark, morbid
8
nouncountable
A thing, or a part of a thing, that has a black color.
Sort the laundry into whites and blacks before you wash it.
Her arrow landed in the black, just outside the blue ring.
Oppositewhite
Note

Less common meanings

9
no milkadjective
With no milk, cream, or creamer added to it.
He drinks his coffee black every morning.
Can I get a black coffee, please?
UsageSay I take my coffee black.
Oppositewhite
10
pigmentnouncountable or uncountable
Paint, ink or color that is black, or a pen or crayon that draws in black.
The artist mixed more black for the shadows.
The printer ran out of black halfway through the job.
Oppositewhite
11
make darkverbtransitive
To make something black, often with polish, paint, or smoke.
Soldiers black their boots before every inspection.
She blacked the old iron stove with polish until it shone.
Similarblacken, darken
Oppositewhiten
Note
12
terribleadjective
Very bad or evil, or bringing bad luck.
It was a black day when the factory closed.
The villain's black heart showed in everything he did.
UsageSay a black day for a very bad day.
Similardark, grim, bleak, bad
Oppositebright
Note
13
pieces (chess)adjective
Belonging to the set of pieces called black in a game like chess, whatever their real color.
She moved a black pawn forward two squares.
The black pieces in this old set are actually dark red.
Oppositewhite
Note
14
player (chess)nouncountable
The player who uses the black pieces in a game like chess.
Black moves second in every game of chess.
After ten moves, Black had already lost a knight.
UsageSay Black wins, with no the.
Oppositewhite
Note
15
secretadjective
Kept secret by a government or army, so the public does not know about it.
Like a secret club that people outside are never told about.
The spy worked on a black project that nobody could talk about.
The hidden money paid for black operations far from public view.
UsageUsed in black ops and black site.
Similarsecret, covert, clandestine, classified
Oppositeovert, public
Note
16
adjectivehistorical
In the past, when laws kept races apart, set aside for Black people only.
Under segregation, she had to wait in the black waiting room at the station.
The town's only black school was a single room with no heat.
Note
17
magicadjective
Connected with magic or secret knowledge, especially the kind used to hurt people or do evil.
The wizard in the story studied black magic.
The book was full of spells used in black magic.
Similardark, occult, forbidden
Note
18
angry lookadjective
Angry or making people feel that something bad will happen.
He gave me a black look when I took his seat.
She was in a black mood all afternoon.
UsageSay a black look for an angry face.
Similardark, sullen, menacing, thunderous, foul
Note
19
nouncolloquialuncountable
The fact of belonging to a group of people with dark skin, such as people from Africa.
To him, Black is not just a skin color but a history and a family.
"Black is beautiful," the singer told the cheering crowd.
20
covered in dirtadjective
Very dirty, as if covered in dirt or smoke.
His hands were black after he fixed the car engine.
She scrubbed the black pots until they shone again.
UsageSay black with dirt.
Similardirty, filthy, grimy, sooty, dingy
Oppositeclean
Note
21
card suitadjective
Belonging to the spades or clubs in a deck of cards.
She needed one more black card to win the hand.
All four cards he drew were black.
Oppositered
Note
22
pool ballnouncountable
The ball that is colored black in pool or snooker.
He sank the black to win the game.
Don't hit the black yet, or you lose your turn.
UsageSay the black.
Note
23
filled symboladjective
Filled in with solid color, not just drawn as an outline.
Like coloring a shape all the way in instead of just drawing its edge.
Use a black star for finished tasks and an empty star for the rest.
The map marks capital cities with black circles and other towns with open ones.
Similarsolid, filled
Oppositeopen, white, hollow
Note
24
boycottverbBritishtransitive
To refuse to handle or work with goods or a business during a worker dispute.
The dock workers blacked all goods from the ship.
Union members voted to black the firm's deliveries.
UsageOften used in the passive: the goods were blacked.
Similarboycott, blacklist
Note
25
nouncolloquialUKcountable or uncountable
Blackcurrant syrup, or a blackcurrant drink with alcohol, that is mixed into cocktails.
Can I have a cider and black, please?
The barman put a dash of black in her lager.
UsageSaid as a lager and black.
Similarblackcurrant
Note
26
adjective
Connected with anarchism, the political idea that there should be no government.
27
noun
Dark cloth hung up to show sadness where a funeral is held.
Groans, and convulsions, and a discolored face, and friends weeping, and blacks, and obsequies, and the like, show death terrible.
1625, Francis Bacon, “Of Death”
28
nounslangUS
The drug marijuana, also called weed or pot.
He pulled on the black, the tip of the filter hot and malleable between his lips, and felt a cool tingling coat the simmer in his chest and begin to eat away at it in small bites.
2008, Jesmyn Ward, Where the Line BleedsHere, the black means marijuana, which he is smoking.
29
adjectivecolloquialIreland
Very crowded, with a lot of people.
30
adjective
Connected with a center-right German political party, the CDU.
31
adjectiveIreland
Protestant, in Ireland, and often strongly for Britain or against Catholics.
32
adjectiveSingaporeSinglish
Very unhappy and angry.
33
noun
In baseball, home plate's edge, where pitchers try to aim.
34
nouncolloquial
Short for blackcurrant, a small dark berry, or its taste.
35
nounobsolete
A spot or mark on something.
defiling her white lawn of chastity with ugly blacks of lust
1619, William Rowley, All's Lost by Lust
36
noun
A fungus that harms wheat and leaves a dark powder.
37
verb
To cover something with black polish.

More uses

in the blackmaking money, or having money in the bank and not in debt

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of black apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

From Old English "blæc" meaning black or dark (also ink), from an older Germanic word that meant "burnt." It may go back to a root meaning "to burn or shine."

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

Black derives from Old English blæc, meaning black or dark and also ink. en.wiktionary.org
The Old English word derives from an older Germanic word meaning burnt. en.wiktionary.org
The word may ultimately derive from a root meaning to burn or shine. en.wiktionary.org