darkness

Noun

darkness (countable and uncountable, plural darknesses)

1. (uncountable) The state of being dark; lack of light; the absolute or comparative absence of light.
   • The darkness of the room made it difficult to see.
   • Over everything was darkness and thick silence, and the smell of dust and sunflowers.1912, Willa Cather, The Bohemian Girl
2. (uncountable) The state or quality of reflecting little light, of tending to a blackish or brownish color.
   • The darkness of her skin betrayed her Mediterranean heritage.
3. Any space that such colour pervades.
   • Out of the darkness came some flickers of light.
4. (uncountable) Gloom; gloominess; depression.
5. (countable) The product of being dark.
6. (uncountable) Lack of understanding or compassion; spiritual or mental blindness.
   • And now, the prophecy. One will come, the voice from the outer world, bringing the holy war, the jihad, which will cleanse the universe and bring us out of darkness.1984, 41:18 from the start, in Dune (Science Fiction), spoken by Reverend Mother Ramallo, →OCLC
7. (uncountable) Secrecy; concealment.
8. (uncountable) Lack of knowledge; obscurity or meaning or intelligibility; the unknown.
   • It was just robbery with violence, aggravated murder on a great scale, and men going at it blind - as is very proper for those who tackle a darkness.1899 February, Joseph Conrad, “The Heart of Darkness”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume CLXV, number M, New York, N.Y.: The Leonard Scott Publishing Company, […], →OCLC, part I, page 195
9. (uncountable) Nothingness, vanity, emptiness.
   • My own dim life should teach me this,
     ⁠That life shall live for evermore,
     ⁠Else earth is darkness at the core,
     And dust and ashes all that is; […]1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Canto XXXIV”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 53
10. (uncountable) Hell.
    • Shepard: Can you tell me anything about the beacon?
      Dr. Warren: It's some type of data module from a galaxy-wide communications network. Remarkably well-preserved. It could be the greatest scientific discovery of our lifetime!
      Dr. Warren: Miraculous new technologies. Groundbreaking medical...2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Eden Prime