1
: partly black and partly white in color
2
: being in writing or print
3
: executed in dark pigment on a light background or in light pigment on a dark ground
a black-and-white drawing
4
: monochrome sense 2
black-and-white film
black-and-white television
5
a
: sharply divided into good and evil
b
: evaluating or viewing things as either all good or all bad
black-and-white morality
c
: sharply defined : clear-cut
the truth is not always black-and-white
Examples of black-and-white in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Judy Berman, TIME, 30 Apr. 2024
The gorgeous black-and-white film doesn’t serve up a fleet of facts about Dylan’s career or attempt to place him in a larger cultural context.
—Dustin Nelson, SPIN, 30 Apr. 2024
The new photo showed the newlyweds in a black-and-white snap taken at Buckingham Palace after their fairytale ceremony at Westminster Abbey, captured by Millie Pilkington.
—Stephanie Petit, Peoplemag, 29 Apr. 2024
Among its regal charms are soaring 25-foot ceilings, intricate plasterwork and detailed moldings, and glossy black-and-white checkerboard marble floors.
—Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 24 Apr. 2024
Baldwin’s black-and-white photographs of Charlotte landmarks scatter the restaurant walls too.
—Philip Freeman, Charlotte Observer, 24 Apr. 2024
The black-and-white video, which has been viewed by ABC News, appears to show a woman with glasses ringing a doorbell and waiting for someone to answer.
—Marilyn Heck, ABC News, 22 Apr. 2024
For decades the painting has only been known from one black-and-white photograph that was taken in the 1920s.
—Scott Reyburn, New York Times, 22 Apr. 2024
The black-and-white teaser gave a sneak peak of the visuals for the music video.
—Saba Hamedy, NBC News, 19 Apr. 2024
Rachel Desantis, Peoplemag, 28 Mar. 2023
While most Americans had a TV by the early 1960s, most of those were black-and-white sets.
—Matt Novak, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2023
The birds flitted from corner to corner in their cages, quick little sprites with black-and-white breasts and flame-orange beaks.
—Burkhard Bilger, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2023
Natural light pours in from body-length windows, accentuating the black-and-white industrial aesthetic of the salon, which is complimented by colorful street art.
—Julian E.j. Sorapuru, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Mar. 2023
The Instagram carousel includes several black-and-white photos of Grande wearing white gloves, a polka-dot dress and her iconic ponytail, and Erivo sporting a plaid dress, tall dark boots and hoop earrings.
—Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Mar. 2023
In the first three black-and-white pictures, Grande and Erivo are wearing very cute outfits, with Grande in a strapless polkadot gown with opera gloves.
—Aimée Lutkin, ELLE, 26 Mar. 2023
Tybee Island, Georgia Grassy sand dunes and a historic black-and-white striped lighthouse bring a quaint coastal feel to Tybee Island, about 18 miles from Savannah.
—Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 25 Mar. 2023
The nine members’ work is mostly in color but contains some black-and-white pictures.
—Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 24 Mar. 2023
Adjective
Netflix’s Patricia Highsmith adaptation Ripley might’ve been the higher-profile of the pair, squandering Andrew Scott’s nuanced lead performance as lethal con man Tom Ripley and gorgeous black-and-white cinematography from Robert Elswit on a series so languid as to be fully enervating.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 30 Apr. 2024
The gorgeous black-and-white film doesn’t serve up a fleet of facts about Dylan’s career or attempt to place him in a larger cultural context.
—Dustin Nelson, SPIN, 30 Apr. 2024
The new photo showed the newlyweds in a black-and-white snap taken at Buckingham Palace after their fairytale ceremony at Westminster Abbey, captured by Millie Pilkington.
—Stephanie Petit, Peoplemag, 29 Apr. 2024
Among its regal charms are soaring 25-foot ceilings, intricate plasterwork and detailed moldings, and glossy black-and-white checkerboard marble floors.
—Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 24 Apr. 2024
Baldwin’s black-and-white photographs of Charlotte landmarks scatter the restaurant walls too.
—Philip Freeman, Charlotte Observer, 24 Apr. 2024
The black-and-white video, which has been viewed by ABC News, appears to show a woman with glasses ringing a doorbell and waiting for someone to answer.
—Marilyn Heck, ABC News, 22 Apr. 2024
For decades the painting has only been known from one black-and-white photograph that was taken in the 1920s.
—Scott Reyburn, New York Times, 22 Apr. 2024
The black-and-white teaser gave a sneak peak of the visuals for the music video.
—Saba Hamedy, NBC News, 19 Apr. 2024
Noun
Tanaka, 39, chose a sweet black-and-white shot of the couple smiling together to share alongside his birthday message.
—Rachel Desantis, Peoplemag, 28 Mar. 2023
While most Americans had a TV by the early 1960s, most of those were black-and-white sets.
—Matt Novak, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2023
The birds flitted from corner to corner in their cages, quick little sprites with black-and-white breasts and flame-orange beaks.
—Burkhard Bilger, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2023
Natural light pours in from body-length windows, accentuating the black-and-white industrial aesthetic of the salon, which is complimented by colorful street art.
—Julian E.j. Sorapuru, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Mar. 2023
The Instagram carousel includes several black-and-white photos of Grande wearing white gloves, a polka-dot dress and her iconic ponytail, and Erivo sporting a plaid dress, tall dark boots and hoop earrings.
—Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Mar. 2023
In the first three black-and-white pictures, Grande and Erivo are wearing very cute outfits, with Grande in a strapless polkadot gown with opera gloves.
—Aimée Lutkin, ELLE, 26 Mar. 2023
Tybee Island, Georgia Grassy sand dunes and a historic black-and-white striped lighthouse bring a quaint coastal feel to Tybee Island, about 18 miles from Savannah.
—Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 25 Mar. 2023
The nine members’ work is mostly in color but contains some black-and-white pictures.
—Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 24 Mar. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'black-and-white.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near black-and-white
Cite this Entry
“Black-and-white.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/black-and-white. Accessed 4 May. 2024.
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