Word.ws English Dictionary

Synonyms of black

63 similar words · 10 opposite words

Another word for black is raven. Other synonyms of black are ebony, swart, inky, ebon and pitchy. The opposite of black is white.

Synonyms and similar words for black

adjectiveAbsorbing all light and reflecting none; dark and hueless.

  • dark
  • swartOf a dark hue; moderately black; swarthy; tawny.

adjectiveWithout light.

nounThe colour/color perceived in the absence of light, but also when no light is reflected, but rather...

  • blacknessThe state or quality of being black in colour.

nounA member or descendant of any of various (African, Aboriginal, etc) ethnic groups which typically...

  • BIPOC
  • BME2-Mercaptoethanol.
  • coloredA person having ancestry from more than one of the racial groups of Southern Africa (black, white, and Asian); a...
  • minority
  • nonwhiteA person who is not white.
  • person of color
  • colored person dated

verbTo make black; to blacken.

verbTo boycott, usually as part of an industrial dispute.

  • blackballTo ostracize.
  • blacklistTo place on a blacklist; to mark a person or entity as one to be shunned or banned.
  • boycottTo abstain, either as an individual or a group, from using, buying, or dealing with someone or some organization as an...
  • cancelTo cease to provide financial or moral support to (someone deemed unacceptable); to disinvite. Compare cancel culture.

adjectiveMore synonyms

  • atramentalSynonym of inky, inklike, black.
  • atramentousSynonym of inky, black, inklike.
  • ebonBlack in colour.
  • ebonyA deep, dark black colour.
  • inkishSynonym of inky, inklike, black.
  • inklikeSynonym of inky, black, resembling ink.
  • inkySynonym of black.
  • pitchyVery dark black; pitch-black.
  • ravenOf the jet-black and often glossy colour of the plumage of a raven (etymology 1, noun sense 1).
  • sableDark-skinned; Black.
  • sabledBlack or sable in colour.
  • jetty archaicLike jet (“a hard, black form of coal”) in colour; jet-black, pitch-black.
  • negro dated, offensiveRelating to a black ethnicity.
  • nigrous dated, offensiveBlack.

Opposite of black

adjectiveAbsorbing all light and reflecting none; dark and hueless.

  • whiteBright and colourless; reflecting equal quantities of all frequencies of visible light.
  • light

adjectiveWithout light.

nounThe colour/color perceived in the absence of light, but also when no light is reflected, but rather...

adjectiveMore antonyms

Meaning of black

  1. adjective Absorbing all light and reflecting none; dark and hueless.
  2. adjective Without light.
  3. adjective Belonging to or descended from any of various (African, Aboriginal, etc.) ethnic groups which typically have dark pigmentation of the skin. (See usage notes below.).

Full definition of black

black in other languages

Questions about synonyms of black

What is another word for black?
Black has 63 synonyms on Word.ws, such as raven, ebony, swart, inky, ebon, pitchy and dark.
What is the opposite of black?
The opposite of black is white. Other antonyms of black are light and clear.
What does black mean?
Black means absorbing all light and reflecting none; dark and hueless.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: black (page history and authors) and the entries of the words listed. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws grouped the synonyms and antonyms by meaning and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “Synonyms of black.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/synonyms/black. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.