black

The word “black” means having the darkest possible color; reflecting no light. In plain terms, the darkest color, or (capitalized) referring to Black people and their identity and culture.

“Black” is pronounced blak (/blæk/ in IPA).

Here is “black” used in a sentence: “She wore a black dress to the funeral.”

Words with a similar meaning to “black” include atramental, atramentous, black as a dog's guts, black as coal, black as Newgate's knocker and black as night.

The opposite of “black” — its antonyms — is white.

Depending on how it is used, “black” can be an adjective, a noun and a verb.

The word “black” comes from Old English. From Old English blæc ("black, dark; also ink"), ultimately from a root meaning "burnt" — related to words for burning and scorching in several old languages.

“Black” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.

It depends on the field. In everyday language and in paint or printing, black is treated as a colour. In physics, black is the absence of visible light, since a black surface absorbs nearly all wavelengths and reflects none. So black is a colour in art and design, but technically 'no light' in science.

White is the opposite of black. Where black absorbs light and reflects none, white reflects nearly all of it, which is why the two sit at opposite ends of the greyscale. The pairing also carries figurative contrasts, such as dark and light or, in many expressions, bad and good.

Black is a single, exact colour — the darkest possible, reflecting no light. 'Dark' is a broader term meaning low in light or deep in shade, so any colour can be dark: dark blue, dark green, dark grey. All black things are dark, but not everything dark is black.