blacklist

American  

[blak-list] / ˈblækˌlɪst /

noun

• blacklists
  plural

1. a list of persons under suspicion, disfavor, censure, etc..

   His record as an anarchist put him on the government's blacklist.

2. a list privately exchanged among employers, containing the names of persons to be barred from employment because of untrustworthiness or for holding opinions considered undesirable.

3. a list drawn up by a labor union, containing the names of employers to be boycotted for unfair labor practices.

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verb (used with object)

1. to put (a person, group, company, etc.) on a blacklist.

   Synonyms:

   ostracize, shun, ban, proscribe, debar, bar, blackball

blacklist British  

/ ˈblækˌlɪst /

noun

1. a list of persons or organizations under suspicion, or considered untrustworthy, disloyal, etc, esp one compiled by a government or an organization

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verb

1. (tr) to put on a blacklist

blacklist Cultural  

1. Concerted action by employers to deny employment to someone suspected of unacceptable opinions or behavior. For example, individual workers suspected of favoring labor unions have often been blacklisted by all the employers in a region.

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Discover More

During the McCarthy era (see Joseph P. McCarthy) in the 1950s, the careers of many public figures suspected of communist activities were ruined by blacklisting.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• blacklisting
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• blacklists
  plural

Etymology

Origin of blacklist

First recorded in 1610–20; black + list ¹

Explanation

When people are deliberately excluded from a group or boycotted, the list of their names is a blacklist. Several industries created blacklists during the US anti-communist period of the 1940s and 50s. One of the most famous blacklists was the one established in Hollywood in 1947, with the intention of keeping Communists and their "sympathizers" from working in the film industry. You can use the word as a verb too, meaning to put someone's name on such a list, or to exclude them from employment or inclusion. The term itself dates all the way back to the 17th century, when it was defined as "list of persons who have incurred suspicion."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

blacklist blacklists

Brussels said it was imposing sanctions on nine people and four entities, while London said it was adding 24 names to its blacklist.

From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026

“You can imagine how companies are going to quickly blacklist, for lack of a better phrase, those sorts of consumers for trying to engage in that behavior,” Sudit said.

From MarketWatch ● May 19, 2026

The Brotherhood is a century-old Islamist group that renounced violence in the 1970s, though spinoffs such as Hamas remain active and on the U.S. blacklist.

From Salon ● May 19, 2026

States are also required to check a federal blacklist of providers that committed crimes, gross negligence, fraud or patient abuse, as well as visit providers deemed a high fraud risk.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 29, 2026

He always brings her home, but if some of the underwriters’d see him out here they’d soon blacklist him till he mended his ways.

From The Seiners by James B. (James Brendan) Connolly

The U.S. agreed to pause the implementation of a new rule, unveiled last month, that would add more Chinese firms to government blacklists.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025

In the 1950s, the rise of McCarthyism saw it used to accuse suspected communists of plotting against America, resulting in the Hollywood blacklists.

From Salon ● Jun. 30, 2025

One website, Canary Mission, blacklists those they accuse of being antisemitic.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 2, 2024

"Afghanistan's priority during talks are ending sanctions and blacklists, unfreezing Afghanistan's bank reserves and stopping violation of Afghanistan's airspace," the ministry said, adding they would also meet Qatari officials.

From Reuters ● Jul. 27, 2023

Many of the States, usually Western States—apt to be more forgetful of the common law than the older Commonwealths—have been at pains to pass statutes against blacklists.

From Popular Law-making by Frederic Jesup Stimson

Related Words

• banish
• blackball
• expel
• ostracize
• snub