Black Maria
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of Black Maria
An Americanism dating back to 1840–50
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Black Maria, also called "the Dog House," was the first movie studio ever constructed.
From Salon ● Apr. 2, 2022
Ferguson’s Gang, as they called themselves, were masked, anonymous activists who went by codenames such as Bill Stickers, Granny the Throttler, Black Maria and Red Biddy.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 8, 2019
So let’s start where the novel does, winter ’53, with one of the feared Black Maria trucks arriving in darkness to arrest Solomon Levinson, an actor from the defunct State Jewish Theater.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 25, 2016
Instead of documenting the world, Edison created his own, bringing subjects to his Black Maria studio in northern New Jersey.
From Salon ● Oct. 15, 2010
In his military capacity he now removes the chalky soil from the trench with great dexterity, and builds it up into a neat parapet behind, as a precaution against the back-blast of a "Black Maria."
From The First Hundred Thousand by Ian Hay
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
