black board • blackboard black board—any board of black color: Some chess players like to have contrasting colors to lessen eye strain, thus black pieces on a brown board or brown pieces on a black board . blackboard—a board of either a dark color or white that is written on, especially in classrooms: Over half of what is writ- ten on the blackboard is erased by the end of the lesson. black book • little black book black book —1. a register listing persons that have committed offences against morality, etc.: The German government was in a position to blackmail 47,000 prominent British “perverts” whose names figured in a “black book .” Cf.: be in someone’s black books—be out of favor with a person: Beatrice managed to leave a very uncomfortable impression upon me and it was clear that I was in her black books again. 2. an official book offering special information: Rules relating to naval affairs are still preserved in the black book of the admiralty. little black book—1. a book containing the names of ac- quaintances, potential dates, partners, etc.: I’ve got a nice collection in my little black book . 2. a book for recording per- sonal or private information: Evans kept a note of his expen- diture in a little black book . Note: Neither expression correlates in meaning with the phrase black-letter booka book printed in the old heavy Gothic style of type: She saw Sir John seated by the fireplace, reading out of a great black letter book . black box • dark box black box—1. a flight recorder in an aircraft: The flight recorder is an indestructible “black box ” which automatically records the key functions in the aircraft. 2. any apparatus of unknown internal design: Crime squads are searching for the manufacturer of a black box which contains a device that can reverse electricity meter readings. 3. (Austral.) a tree with nar- row, grey-green leaves and rugged, dark grey bark: Other com- munities contain species that are at the extremes of their nat- ural distribution, such as black box (Eucalyptus largiflorens). dark box —a container from which light is wholly excluded (used for storing light-sensitive plates, etc.): Diaphanoscope— a dark box constructed for exhibiting transparent photographs. Note: Neither expression is antonymous in meaning to the phrase white box— used of computers without brand names (such as Dell, HP, etc.) assembled by smaller manufacturers and often packed in unlabeled white boxes: Computer professionals often prefer white box computers constructed with higher quality components. black cap • black hat black cap—1. a warbler: We followed a pleasant path through trees and soon found ourselves listening to the sweet bubbling song of a black cap . 2. (UK hist.) a cap put on by a judge before sentencing a person to death: He acquitted two men and then placed the black cap on his head and sentenced the other two to death. black hat—1. (coll.) the bad party in a situation (from the color of hat traditionally worn by the bad character in Western films): Past entertainment had a moral content—the white hats won and the black hats lost. 2. (Austral. sl.) a new immi- grant: I’d never let it be said that a black hat had cut me out. black-collar workers • white-collar workers black-collar workers —1. miners (especially coal miners) and oil workers: He began performing in the smoky gin mills that catered to black-collar workers who liked their booze and blues straight. 2. (sl.) people engaged in media industries (artists, graphic designers, video producers, etc.): Black-collar workers , for those of you that aren’t cool enough to know, are the “cre- ative types”; media, fashion, entertainment, etc. white-collar workers —employees whose job is clerical, as opposed to blue-collar workers engaged in manual work: Today blue-collar workers can earn more than some of their white- collar counterparts. Cf.: pink-collar workers — women who work at traditional non-manual jobs (as secretaries, cashiers, etc.): The book allows the voices of the pink-collar workers to demon- strate the simultaneous burdens and pleasures of their work. black eye • blackeye black eye —1. a darkening of the skin about the eye resulting from a bruise: I thought they’d have a row. Hadn’t Michael a black eye ? 2. a severe blow or rebuff: I hope the Pension Com- mittee will give a black eye to every bill of that kind. blackeye—a sprawling herb (Vigua sinensis) cultivated for forage and green manure: Blackeye crop is allowed to fully mature, then they are cut and dried to be packaged. black hole • black hole of Calcutta black hole —said of a situation when money or resource dis- appear and are not expected to be recovered (originally of a re- gion of space from which nothing can escape, even light): What steps are industrial companies taking to dig their way out this financial black hole ? black hole of Calcutta —a place that is small, dark, and un- comfortable: Somebody finally decided to do something for the poor souls we lock up in a black hole of Calcutta . black ivory • ivory black black ivory—(hist.) Black African slaves viewed as a com- modity: Help them to make money otherwise than by dealing in black ivory , and we shall see the slave trade extirpated. ivory black—a black pigment from calcined ivory: Ivory black is ivory or bones thoroughly burnt, and afterwards ground. black-leg • Blackfoot black-leg —1. (UK coll.) a non-union workman; a strike- breaker: The police were used to protect the blacklegs , as those are called who work outside the Union movement. 2. (coll.) a professional gambler, especially a cheating one: You see no- blemen and black-legs bawling and betting in the Cockpit. 3. a disease in cattle, caused by the fungus Leptosphaeria macu- lans, which affects the legs: A cattle disease, known as blackleg , is stated to have killed a number of cattle in the district. Note: The expression does not correlate in meaning with its formal French counterpart pied noirused of people of French origin living in Algeria during French rule: M. Fabre was an elderly colon, one of the original French families in Algeria— a pied noir , as they like to be called. Blackfoot—1. people belonging to the Blackfoot Indian Con- federacy: Among the Blackfoot , stealing an enemy’s weapons was the highest exploit. 2. the language of the Algonquian American Indians: A few detached languages in the west: Blackfoot , Cheyenne, and Arapaho. black market • gray market black market—an illegal market in which goods or curren- cies are bought and sold in violation of price controls, ra- tioning, etc.: Drugs are sold at the black market and they can do much more damage than cigarettes can in most cases. Note: The expression is not antonymous in meaning to the phrase white sale— a sale at reduced prices of goods such as towels, linens, etc.: We went to the white sale at the department store to buy some new sheets before my parents come to visit. gray market—the retail business operating within the law but selling goods, such as imports, at prices below those set by an official agency: Also affected by the gray market activities are highly technical products such as disc drives, computers, computer chips. black board – 50 –