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• black and white
  black and white

  noun

  black.
• black-and-white
  black-and-white

  adjective

  displaying only black and white tones; without color, as a picture or chart.

black and white

¹ American  

noun

1. black.

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black-and-white ² American  

[blak-uhn-hwahyt, -wahyt] / ˈblæk ənˈʰwaɪt, -ˈwaɪt /

adjective

1. displaying only black and white tones; without color, as a picture or chart.

   a black-and-white photograph.

2. partly black and partly white; made up of separate areas or design elements of black and white.

   black-and-white shoes.

3. of, relating to, or constituting a two-valued system, as of logic or morality; absolute.

   To those who think in black-and-white terms, a person must be either entirely good or entirely bad.

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black-and-white British  

noun

1. 1. a photograph, picture, sketch, etc, in black, white, and shades of grey rather than in colour

   2. ( as modifier )

      black-and-white film

2. the neutral tones of black, white, and intermediate shades of grey Compare colour

3. 1. in print or writing

   2. in extremes

      he always saw things in black and white

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black and white Idioms  

1. A monochromatic picture, drawing, television image, computer monitor, or film, as opposed to one using many colors, as in Photos in black and white fade less than those taken with color film . [Late 1800s]

2. Also, black or white . Involving a very clear distinction, without any gradations. For example, He tended to view everything as a black and white issue—it was either right or wrong—whereas his partner always found gray areas . This usage is based on the association of black with evil and white with virtue, which dates back at least 2,000 years. [Early 1800s] Also see gray area .

3. in black and white . Written down or in print, and therefore official. For example, The terms of our agreement were spelled out in black and white, so there should be no question about it . This term alludes to black ink or print on white paper. Shakespeare used it in Much Ado about Nothing (5:1). [Late 1500s]

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Etymology

Origin of black-and-white

First recorded in 1590–1600

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

black and white black-and-white

The story is deeper, more complicated, and far from clean-cut black and white.

From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2026

The cameras normally capture images in black and white.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026

All the signage is in black and white, the walls various shades of gray.

From Slate ● Sep. 18, 2026

It was also socially integrated, Mr. White contends, which resulted in “unprecedented contact and commingling” between black and white New Yorkers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026

Soon blacks were gathered at Quinn Chapel, celebrating the first-ever wage scale in Chicago that gave equal pay to black and white waiters.

From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield

Gazza's baggy Roman shellsuit, John Charles plundering black-and-white goals in Turin, King Kev's floodlit perm dazzling Volksparkstadion terraces, Glenn Hoddle's minuscule Monegasque shorts.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

“Keeping Up With the Kardashians” fans will immediately recognize the six-bedroom property’s dramatic black-and-white entryway, which features two grand staircases that lead up to the second floor.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026

Silvana Armani, the Italian designer's niece, offered black-and-white dresses and ensembles, with necklines sometimes plunging all the way to the navel.

From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026

Four Marines crouch in the foreground surrounded by the blackened remains of burned trees; in the top two-thirds of the picture the black-and-white smoke of the blast billows upward, beautiful in its destruction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

We watch a black-and-white video of her playing a tune called “Reverie,” soft and slow.

From "Muffled" by Jennifer Gennari

Related Words

• book
• copy
• edition
• engraving
• lettering
• lithograph
• magazine
• newspaper
• photograph
• stamp
• type
• writing