noir

See also: Noir

English

Etymology

From film noir and French noir. Doublet of negro.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈnwɑː/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈnwɑɹ/
• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)

Adjective

noir (comparative more noir, superlative most noir)

1. (film, television) Of or pertaining to film noir, or the atmosphere associated with that genre
   • 2008, Jerold J. Abrams & Elizabeth Cooke, “Detection and the Logic of Abduction in The X-Files”, in The Philosophy of TV Noir‎^[1], →ISBN, page 182:

     As a neo-Sherlock Holmes, however, Mulder is also a very noir version of the classic detective (just as Scully is a very noir Watson).

Derived terms

• neo-noir
• noirish

Noun

noir (countable and uncountable, plural noirs)

1. (film and television, uncountable) Film noir.
2. (film and television, countable) A production in the style of film noir.

Anagrams

• Iron, Orin, RINO, Rion, inro, inrō, iron, nori, roin

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French

Alternative forms

• Noir (for the noun with the sense "black person")

Etymology

From Middle French noir, from Old French noir, neir, from Latin nigrum, accusative of niger. Doublet of nègre.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /nwaʁ/

• audio

  (file)

• Audio (FR)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -waʁ

Adjective

noir (feminine noire, masculine plural noirs, feminine plural noires)

1. black in colour.

   Ce chat est noir. ― This cat is black.

2. drunk; inebriated.

   Il est noir. ― He is drunk.

3. black, of black ethnicity

   Il est noir. ― He is black.

Noun

noir m (plural noirs, feminine noire)

1. a black person
2. a person whose hair is dark
3. dark; darkness

   Je suis seul dans le noir. - I'm alone in the dark.

Derived terms

• noir de monde
• une nuit noire
• noirâtre

Related terms

• noircir
• noirceur

See also

Colors in French · couleurs (layout · text)

blanc	gris	noir
rouge; cramoisi, carmin	orange; brun, marron	jaune; crème
lime	vert	menthe
cyan, turquoise; bleu canard	azur, bleu ciel	bleu
violet, lilas; indigo	magenta; pourpre	rose

• film noir

Further reading

• “noir”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

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Middle French

Etymology

From Old French noir, neir.

Noun

noir m (uncountable)

1. black

Adjective

noir m (feminine singular noire, masculine plural noirs, feminine plural noires)

1. black

Descendants

• French: noir

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Old French

Alternative forms

• neir

Etymology

From earlier neir, from Latin nigrum, accusative of niger.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /nojr/

Noun

noir oblique singular, m (oblique plural noirs, nominative singular noirs, nominative plural noir)

1. black (color)

Adjective

noir m (oblique and nominative feminine singular noire)

1. black; having a black color

Descendants

• Middle French: noir
  • French: noir
• Walloon: noer