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blackly

American  
[blak-lee] / ˈblæk li /

adverb

  1. darkly; gloomily.

  2. wickedly.

    a plot blackly contrived to wreak vengeance.

  3. angrily.

    blackly refusing to yield to reason.


Etymology

Origin of blackly

First recorded in 1555–65; black + -ly

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.

What follows in Polish filmmaker Jan Komasa’s blackly comic, unnerving thriller is clearly meant to evoke “Heel’s” more obedience-minded reading.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 6, 2026

A well-built, blackly comic morality play for which he stayed behind the camera, it’s among both his less metafictional endeavors and his most conventionally absorbing.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 15, 2025

This blackly comic horror riff is heavy on the social satire and sprinkled with scares, as Reijn has intelligently pulled together and reinterpreted traditional horror tropes in order to send up the youth of today.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 12, 2022

They run the gamut from blackly funny to apocalyptic, with a few surprisingly cheerful stops along the way.

From Washington Post • Jun. 14, 2021

She looked at them blackly for a while, her jaws moving steadily.

From "The Sound and the Fury" by William Faulkner

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