Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary полностью

2 N‑UNCOUNT If you describe an action as emotional or moral blackmail , you disapprove of it because someone is using a person's emotions or moral values to persuade them to do something against their will. [DISAPPROVAL ] □  The tactics employed can range from overt bullying to subtle emotional blackmail.

3 VERB If one person blackmails another person, they use blackmail against them. □ [be V -ed] The government insisted that it would not be blackmailed by violence. □ [V n + into ] I thought he was trying to blackmail me into saying whatever he wanted. [Also V n + with ] ●  black|mail|er (blackmailers ) N‑COUNT □  The nasty thing about a blackmailer is that his starting point is usually the truth.

bla ck ma rk (black marks ) N‑COUNT A black mark against someone is something bad that they have done or a bad quality that they have which affects the way people think about them. □  There was one black mark against him.

bla ck ma r|ket (black markets ) N‑COUNT If something is bought or sold on the black market , it is bought or sold illegally. □  There is a plentiful supply of arms on the black market.

bla ck mar|ket|ee r (black marketeers ) N‑COUNT A black marketeer is someone who sells goods on the black market. [JOURNALISM ]

black|ness /blæ knəs/ N‑UNCOUNT Blackness is the state of being very dark. [LITERARY ] □  The twilight had turned to a deep blackness.

black|out /blæ kaʊt/ (blackouts ) also black-out

1 N‑COUNT [usu sing] A blackout is a period of time during a war in which towns and buildings are made dark so that they cannot be seen by enemy planes. □  …blackout curtains.

2 N‑COUNT [usu sing, usu n N ] If a blackout is imposed on a particular piece of news, journalists are prevented from broadcasting or publishing it. □  …a media blackout imposed by the Imperial Palace. □  Journalists said there was a virtual news blackout about the rally.

3 N‑COUNT [usu sing, usu n N ] If there is a power blackout , the electricity supply to a place is temporarily cut off. □  There was an electricity black-out in a large area in the north of the country.

4 N‑COUNT If you have a blackout , you temporarily lose consciousness. □  I suffered a black-out which lasted for several minutes.

bla ck pe p|per N‑UNCOUNT Black pepper is pepper which is dark in colour and has been made from the dried berries of the pepper plant, including their black outer cases.

bla ck pu d|ding (black puddings ) N‑VAR Black pudding is a thick sausage which has a black skin and is made from pork fat and pig's blood. [mainly BRIT ]

bla ck shee p N‑COUNT [usu sing] If you describe someone as the black sheep of their family or of a group that they are a member of, you mean that they are considered bad or worthless by other people in that family or group. [DISAPPROVAL ]

black|smith /blæ ksm I θ/ (blacksmiths ) N‑COUNT A blacksmith is a person whose job is making things by hand out of metal that has been heated to a high temperature.

bla ck spot (black spots ) also blackspot

1 N‑COUNT If you describe a place, time, or part of a situation as a black spot , you mean that it is particularly bad or likely to cause problems. [BRIT ] □  There are recognised black spots in marriages which can lead to trouble.

2 N‑COUNT A black spot is a place on a road where accidents often happen. [BRIT ] □  The accident happened on a notorious black spot on the A43.

bla ck tie also black-tie

1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A black tie event is a formal social event such as a party at which people wear formal clothes called evening dress. □  …a black-tie dinner for former students.