Black

See also: black and bläck

English

Etymology

From Middle English blak (“black”). Also a variant of Blake, from Old English blāc (“pale”) and Blanc, from Old French blanc (“white”).

Pronunciation

• Audio

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Proper noun

Black

1. A surname​.

Adjective

Black (not comparable)

1. Alternative letter-case form of black (of or relating to any of various ethnic groups having dark pigmentation of the skin)
   • Pull, Geoffrey K. (ed. Wheeler, Rebecca S.) The Workings of Language, ch. 3: "African American Vernacular English Is Not Standard English with Mistakes", p. 40: "Buried among the jargon of the announcement was a mention of a name for AAVE, suggested by a Black scholar in 1975 [sic] but never adopted by linguists: Ebonics. That word, concocted from ebony (a color term from the name of a dark-colored wood) and phonics (the name of a method for teaching reading), was destined to attach to the board as if chiseled into a block of granite and hung round their necks."

Derived terms

• Blackian

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French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /blak/

Noun

Black m or f (plural Blacks)

1. Alternative letter-case form of black