black box

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR black box ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

any unit that forms part of an electronic circuit and that has its function, but not its components, specified.

any comparatively small, usually black, box containing a secret, mysterious, or complex mechanical or electronic device.

Aeronautics. an electronic device, such as a flight recorder, that can be removed from an aircraft as a single package.

Automotive. a device in an electronic ignition system that generates electrical pulses.

Origin of black box

First recorded in 1940–45

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for black box

black box

noun

a self-contained unit in an electronic or computer system whose circuitry need not be known to understand its function

an informal name for flight recorder

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for black box

1947, RAF slang for "navigational instruments;" later extended to any sort of apparatus that operates in a sealed container. Especially of flight recorders from c.1964.

black box in Culture

black box

A crash-resistant steel container that holds instruments that record performance data in airplanes. The data are used to analyze the causes of accidents.