black book
noun
Simple meaning
A book kept for the purpose of registering the names of persons liable to censure or punishment.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
blakbuukSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈblækˈbʊk
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A book kept for the purpose of registering the names of persons liable to censure or punishment, as in the English universities, or the English armies.
A book kept in the football with the United States President describing nuclear retaliation options.
by extension
A book critiquing or denouncing something.
A book compiled in the 12th century, containing a description of the court of exchequer of England, an official statement of the revenues of the crown, etc.
A book containing details of the enormities practiced in the English monasteries and religious houses, compiled by order of their visitors under Henry VIII, to hasten their dissolution.
A 19th century book detailing the corruption and financial abuses of the British government.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A book kept for the purpose of registering the names of persons liable to censure or punishment, as in the English universities, or the English armies.
Used this way, black book is a reasonably familiar word with a faintly unfavourable edge. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Critical or judgemental
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.