black

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   Of the darkest colour, like the night sky with no light.

   She wore a long black dress to the party.

2. 2
   adj

   Belonging to a group of people with dark skin, especially of African origin.

   The film celebrates the achievements of Black writers.

3. 3
   adj

   Offering little or no hope; very sad or gloomy.

   After the bad news, the future looked black.

4. 4
   adj

   Bought or sold illegally.

   They sold the goods on the black market.

Common collocations

• black coffee Adjective + noun
• black ice Adjective + noun
• black magic Adjective + noun

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

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