black

I. black¹ S1 W1 /blæk/ BrE AmE adjective (comparative blacker, superlative blackest)
[Language: Old English; Origin: blæc]
1. COLOUR having the darkest colour, like coal or night:
a black evening dress
jet/inky black (=very dark)
jet black hair
2. NO LIGHT very dark because there is no light:
It was still pitch black (=very dark) out.
3. PEOPLE (also Black)
a) belonging to the race of people who originally came from Africa and who have dark brown skin ⇨ white:
Over half the students are black.
b) [only before noun] relating to black people:
politics from a black perspective
Black and Asian music
4. DRINK [only before noun] black coffee or tea does not have milk in it OPP white:
Black coffee, no sugar, please.
5. DIRTY informal very dirty
be black with soot/dirt/age etc
6. WITHOUT HOPE sad and without hope for the future:
the blackest period of European history
a mood of black despair
It’s been another black day for the car industry, with more job losses announced.
7. HUMOUR making jokes about serious subjects, especially death:
a very black joke
8. ANGRY [only before noun] full of feelings of anger or hate ⇨ blackly:
Denise gave me a black look.
9. a black mark (against somebody) if there is a black mark against you, someone has a bad opinion of you because of something you have done
10. not be as black as you are painted not to be as bad as people say you are
11. BAD literary very bad:
black deeds

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

black

black [black blacks blacked blacking blacker blackest] adjective, noun, verb [blæk] [blæk]

adjective (black·er, black·est)

COLOUR
1. having the very darkest colour, like night or coal
• a shiny black car

• black storm clouds

WITH NO LIGHT

2. without light; completely dark

• a black night

PEOPLE

3. (also Black) belonging to a race of people who have dark skin; connected with black people
• a black woman writer

• black culture Black is the word most widely used and generally accepted in Britain. In the US the currently accepted term is African American.

TEA/COFFEE

4. without milk
• Two black coffees, please.

compare white

DIRTY

5. very dirty; covered with dirt
• chimneys black with smoke

• Go and wash your hands; they're absolutely black!

ANGRY

6. full of anger or hatred
• She's been in a really black mood all day.

• Rory shot her a black look.

DEPRESSING

7. without hope; very depressing
• The future looks pretty black.

• It's been another black day for the north-east with the announcement of further job losses.

EVIL

8. (literary) evil or immoral

• black deeds/lies

HUMOUR

9. dealing with unpleasant or terrible things, such as murder, in a humorous way
• ‘Good place to bury the bodies,’ she joked with black humour.
• The play is a black comedy.
see also blackly
more at the pot calling the kettle black at pot _n.
Word Origin:
Old English blæc, of Germanic origin.
Thesaurus:
black adj.
1.
• It's pitch black outside tonight.
dark • • unlit •
Opp: light
a black/dark night
go black/dark
pitch black/dark
2. (especially BrE)
• a black girl
African American • • non-white • • mixed race • |AmE of color •
black/African American/non-white/mixed race people
people of mixed race/color
black/African American culture
Black or African American? Black is the mostly widely used and accepted term in Britain; a black person from the US is African American. Black can also be used as a noun, but it is only acceptable in the plural. Use the adjective for singular use
• equality for blacks and whites
• a black man/woman

Example Bank:
• It was pitch black outside.
• She had beautiful jet-black hair.
• The sky looks very black.
• His hands were all black from messing with the car.
• He denounced these acts as ‘black deeds‘.
• It's been another black day for the north-east with the announcement of further job losses.
• My head banged on a rock and everything went black.
• The future looks pretty black, I'm afraid.
• The wind and rain intensified the black darkness outside.
• Through the black night came the sound of thunder.
• a black girl
• a black man/woman

• equality for blacks and whites

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition

black / blæk / adjective (COLOUR)

A1 having the darkest colour there is, like the colour of coal or of a very dark night:

black shoes

black / blæk / adjective (PEOPLE)

Black A2 relating or belonging to people with black or dark brown skin, especially people who live in Africa or whose family originally came from Africa:

Black culture

Black Americans

black / blæk / adjective (COFFEE/TEA)

without any milk or cream added:

a cup of strong black coffee

I like my tea black, with sugar.

black / blæk / adjective (BAD)

without hope:

The future looked black.

literary bad or evil:

a black-hearted villain

Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary

black

/blæk/
(blacker, blackest, blacks, blacking, blacked)

Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.

1.
Something that is black is of the darkest colour that there is, the colour of the sky at night when there is no light at all.
She was wearing a black coat with a white collar...
He had thick black hair...
I wear a lot of black...
He was dressed all in black.
COLOUR

2.
A black person belongs to a race of people with dark skins, especially a race from Africa.
He worked for the rights of black people...
...the traditions of the black community.
ADJ

3.
Black people are sometimes referred to as blacks. This use could cause offence.
There are about thirty-one million blacks in the US.
N-COUNT: usu pl

4.
Black coffee or tea has no milk or cream added to it.
A cup of black tea or black coffee contains no calories...
I drink coffee black.
ADJ: ADJ n, v n ADJ

5.
If you describe a situation as black, you are emphasizing that it is very bad indeed.
It was, he said later, one of the blackest days of his political career...
The future for the industry looks even blacker.
ADJ [emphasis]

6.
If someone is in a black mood, they feel very miserable and depressed.
Her mood was blacker than ever.
ADJ

7.
Black humour involves jokes about sad or difficult situations.
‘So you can all go over there and get shot,’ he said, with the sort of black humour common among British troops here...
It’s a black comedy of racial prejudice, mistaken identity and thwarted expectations.
ADJ: usu ADJ n

8.
People who believe in black magic believe that it is possible to communicate with evil spirits.
He was also alleged to have conducted black magic ceremonies...
The King was unjustly accused of practising the black arts.
ADJ: ADJ n

9.
If you say that someone is black and blue, you mean that they are badly bruised.
Whenever she refused, he’d beat her black and blue...
Bud’s nose was still black and blue.
PHRASE: usu PHR after v, v-link PHR

10.
If a person or an organization is in the black, they do not owe anyone any money.
Until his finances are in the black I don’t want to get married.
≠ in the red
PHRASE: v-link PHR, PHR after v

11.
If someone gives you a black look, they look at you in a way that shows that they are very angry about something.
Passing my stall, she cast black looks at the amount of stuff still unsold.
PHRASE: N inflects, usu PHR after v

Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary:

¹black /ˈblæk/ adj black·er; -est
1 a : having the very dark color of coal or the night sky
• black ink
• a black dress
b : very dark because there is no light
• a black night
2 or Black : of or relating to a race of people who have dark skin and who come originally from Africa
• black people
• black culture
✦In the U.S., the term African-American is often preferred over black when referring to Americans of African descent.
3 : very dirty
• His hand were black with grime.
4 : served without cream or milk
• black coffee
5 literary : evil or wicked
• a black deed
- see also black art, black magic
6 a : very sad or hopeless : bleak
• The outlook was black.
• When they heard the terrible news, they were filled with black despair.
b : very tragic or unhappy
• That was a black day in our country's history.
7 : marked by anger or hatred
• A black [=very angry] look darkened his face.
• black resentment
• a black mood
8
- used to describe humor that deals with subjects which are usually regarded as very serious or unpleasant
• The film is a black comedy set in a funeral home.
• black humor
- black·ly adv
• a blackly funny/comic/humorous movie
- black·ness noun [noncount]
• the blackness of the night