Black-as-night
Also, black as coal or pitch. Totally black; also, very dark. For example, The well was black as night, or She had eyes that were black as coal. These similes have survived while others—black as ink, a raven, thunder, hell, the devil, my hat, the minister’s coat, the ace of spades—are seldom if ever heard today. Of the current objects of comparison, pitch may be the oldest, so used in Homer’s Iliad (c. 850 b.c.), and coal is mentioned in a Saxon manuscript from a.d. 1000. John Milton used black as night in Paradise Lost (1667).
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See under lemon sole. any of various popular food flatfishes, as Parophrys vetulus of the Pacific (English sole) and Pseudopleuronectes americanus of the Atlantic (winter flounder or blackback flounder) noun a European flatfish, Microstomus kitt, with a variegated brown body: highly valued as a food fish: family Pleuronectidae
- Black-backed-gull
any of several white gulls, as Larus marinus (great black-backed gull) having a black back and wings. Historical Examples The Sailor’s Word-Book William Henry Smyth Grenfell: Knight-Errant of the North Fullerton Waldo Johnstone of the Border Harold Bindloss noun either of two common black-and-white European coastal gulls, Larus fuscus (lesser black-backed gull) and L. marinus […]
- Black-bag
of, relating to, or distributing money for expenses that has been diverted from the regular budget: Black-bag funds have paid for much overseas travel by the military.
- Black-bag-job
surreptitious or illegal entry or activity by government agents seeking incriminating evidence.
- Blackball
to vote against (a candidate, applicant, etc.). to exclude socially; ostracize: The whole town blackballed them. to reject (a candidate) by placing a blackball in the ballot box. a negative vote, especially in deciding on an applicant or candidate. a black ball placed in a ballot box signifying a negative vote. Contemporary Examples Do Banks […]