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• black tie
  black tie

  noun

  a black bow tie, worn with a dinner jacket.
• black-tie
  black-tie

  adjective

  requiring that guests wear semiformal attire, especially that men wear black bow ties with tuxedos or dinner jackets.

black tie

¹ American  

noun

black ties plural

1. a black bow tie, worn with a dinner jacket.

2. semiformal evening wear for men (distinguished from white tie).

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black-tie ² American  

[blak-tahy] / ˈblækˈtaɪ /

adjective

1. requiring that guests wear semiformal attire, especially that men wear black bow ties with tuxedos or dinner jackets.

   a black-tie dance.

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black tie British  

noun

1. a black bow tie worn with a dinner jacket

2. (modifier) denoting an occasion when a dinner jacket should be worn

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• black ties
  plural

Etymology

Origin of black tie¹

First recorded in 1855–60

Origin of black-tie²

First recorded in 1930–35

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

black tie black-tie

One thousand attendees in black tie are expected.

From Salon ● Jul. 2, 2026

Speaking while wearing black tie attire to a room full of journalists also in formal wear, he praised the Secret Service, and said that everyone in the room owed them a "tremendous debt of gratitude".

From BBC ● Apr. 26, 2026

Hundreds of guests in black tie in the ballroom took cover under tables and later made their way into the hotel lobby and then outdoors as the event was postponed.

From Barron's ● Apr. 26, 2026

The actor did change from the formal black ensemble he wore to the show and to the restaurant into a brown double-breasted suit with a white shirt and black tie for the Vanity Fair party.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 16, 2026

Someone had already laid out clothes for him on the bed: a black suit, white shirt, black tie, white undershirt and underpants, black socks.

From "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman

The first lady’s remarks came after a man armed with a shotgun, handgun and several knives breached security at the Washington black-tie event on April 25.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 5, 2026

Guests at the black-tie White House Correspondents' Dinner scrambled to hide under tables.

From Barron's ● Apr. 26, 2026

Still wearing his black-tie outfit and flanked by Kash Patel and Pete Hegseth, Trump told reporters that the attempt only strengthened his resolve to finish the White House outbuilding.

From Salon ● Apr. 26, 2026

The Sussexes were photographed heading into the black-tie party, also attended by Beyoncé, Adele, Bill Gates and six Kardashians.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026

And, of course, when the occasion arose to write out a menu for a black-tie dinner party in Odessa, he would know exactly what to do.

From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger

Related Words

• tux
• tuxedo