dark (dɑːk
)
Definitions
adjective
- having little or no light ⇒
a dark street
- (of a colour) reflecting or transmitting little light ⇒
dark brown
Compare light1 (sense 29) , medium (sense 2) - (of complexion, hair colour, etc) not fair or blond; swarthy; brunette
- ((in combination) ⇒
dark-eyed
- gloomy or dismal
- sinister; evil ⇒
a dark purpose
- sullen or angry ⇒
a dark scowl
- ignorant or unenlightened ⇒
a dark period in our history
- secret or mysterious ⇒
keep it dark
- phonetics denoting an (l) pronounced with a velar articulation giving back vowel resonance. In English, denoting an (l) pronounced with a velar articulation giving back vowel resonance. In English, l is usually dark when final or preconsonantal Compare light1 (sense 30)
- See go dark
noun
- absence of light; darkness
- night or nightfall
- a dark place, patch, or shadow
- a state of ignorance (esp in the phrase in the dark)
verb
- an archaic word for darken
Alternative Forms
ˈdarkish adjective ˈdarkly adverb ˈdarkness nounWord Origin
Old English deorc ; related to Old High German terchennen to hideSynonyms
View thesaurus entry=
dim,
murky,
shady,
shadowy,
grey,
cloudy,
dingy,
overcast,
dusky,
unlit,
pitch-black,
indistinct,
poorly lit
sunless,
tenebrous,
darksome,
pitchy,
unilluminated
=
evil,
foul,
horrible,
sinister,
infamous,
vile,
satanic,
wicked,
atrocious,
sinful,
hellish,
infernal,
nefarious,
damnable,
=
secret,
deep,
hidden,
mysterious,
concealed,
obscure,
mystic,
enigmatic,
puzzling,
occult,
arcane,
cryptic,
abstruse,
recondite,
Delphic,
=
gloomy,
sad,
grim,
miserable,
low,
bleak,
moody,
dismal,
pessimistic,
melancholy,
sombre,
morbid,
glum,
mournful,
morose,
joyless,
doleful,
cheerless,
Quotations
"The darkest hour is just before the dawn"
Translations
- British English:
dark
When it is dark, there is no light or not much light.dɑːk NOUN
- Spanish:
oscuro
adj oscura
- French:
sombre
adj
- German:
dunkel
adj
- Chinese: 黑暗的 adj
- Arabic: مُظْلِم adj
- Portuguese: escuro adj escura
- Russian: темный adj темная
- Croatian: mračan adj mračna
- Czech: tmavý adj
- Danish: mørk adj
- Dutch: donker adj
- Finnish: tumma adj
- Greek: σκοτεινός adj σκοτεινή
- Italian: scuro adj scura
- Japanese: 暗い adj
- Korean: 어두운 adj
- Norwegian: mørk adj
- Polish: ciemny adj ciemna
- Brazilian Portuguese: escuro adj escura
- European Spanish:
oscuro
adj oscura
- Swedish: mörk adj mörkt
- Thai: มืด adj
- Turkish: karanlık adj
- Vietnamese: tối tăm adj
- British English:
dark
The dark is the lack of light in a place.I've always been afraid of the dark.dɑːk NOUN I've always been afraid of the dark.
- Spanish:
oscuridad
nf
- French:
noir
nm
- German:
Dunkel
nnt
- Chinese: 黑暗 n
- Arabic: ظَلام n
- Portuguese: escuro nm
- Russian: тьма nf
- Croatian: mrak nm
- Czech: tma nf
- Danish: mørk adj
- Dutch: donkere plaats n
- Finnish: pimeä n
- Greek: σκοτάδι nnt
- Italian: buio nm
- Japanese: 闇 n
- Korean: 어둠 n
- Norwegian: mørke nnt
- Polish: ciemność nf
- Brazilian Portuguese: escuro nm
- European Spanish:
oscuridad
nf
- Swedish: mörker nnt
- Thai: ความมืด n
- Turkish: karanlık n
- Vietnamese: bóng tối n
Usage examples
A pair of suspicious dark eyes glared at him, taking in his red uniform with a frown.
, TREASON KEEP (2001)James braces himself to confront the villagers about their dark past.
Country Life (2004)This agenda, keeping his fellow musicians in the dark , continued throughout the set.
Irish Times (2002)I had been rested and from the stand I watched this tall, young, dark Fifer playing in the number 10 jersey.
Glasgow Herald (2001)Bright, sunny weather is more pleasant than dark , cold weather.
, BEYOND FEAR (2002)