Etimology
From Middle English derk, from Old English deorc, from Proto-West Germanic *derk (“dark”), of uncertain origin, but possibly from Proto-Indo-European *dʰerg- (“dim, dull”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- (“dull, dirty”).
adjective
dark (comparative darker, superlative darkest)
Having an absolute or (more often) relative lack of light.
Transmitting, reflecting, or receiving inadequate light to render timely discernment or comprehension: caliginous, darkling, dim, gloomy, lightless, sombre.
(of colour) Dull or deeper in hue; not bright or light.
Ambiguously or unclearly expressed: enigmatic, esoteric, mysterious, obscure, undefined.
Marked by or conducted with secrecy: hidden, secret; clandestine, surreptitious.
Without moral or spiritual light; sinister, malevolent, malign.
Conducive to hopelessness; depressing or bleak.
(of a time period) Lacking progress in science or the arts.
Extremely sad, depressing, or somber, typically due to, or marked by, a tragic or undesirable event.
With emphasis placed on the unpleasant and macabre aspects of life; said of a work of fiction, a work of nonfiction presented in narrative form, or a portion of either.
(broadcasting, of a television station) Off the air; not transmitting.
Examples
The room was too dark for reading.
It was a dark and stormy night, the rain fell in torrents—except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets […]
They burned the old gun that used to stand in the dark corner up in the garret, close to the stuffed fox that always grinned so fiercely. Perhaps the reason why he seemed in such a ghastly rage was that he did not come by his death fairly. And why else was he put away up there out of sight?—and so magnificent a brush as he had too.
[Rural solar plant] schemes are of little help to industry or other heavy users of electricity. Nor is solar power yet as cheap as the grid. For all that, the rapid arrival of electric light to Indian villages is long overdue. When the national grid suffers its next huge outage, as it did in July 2012 when hundreds of millions were left in the dark, look for specks of light in the villages.
Dark signals should be treated as all-way stop signs.
He was, I think, at this time quite dark, and so had been for some years.
my sister's hair is darker than mine
her skin grew dark with a suntan
Serene, smiling, enigmatic, she faced him with no fear whatever showing in her dark eyes. The clear light of the bright autumn morning had no terrors for youth and health like hers.
If I close my eyes I can see Marie today as I saw her then. Round, rosy face, snub nose, dark hair piled up in a chignon.
What's your dark meaning, mouse, of this light word?
What may seem dark at the first, will afterward be found more plain.
It is the remark of an ingenious writer, should a barbarous Indian, who had never seen a palace or a ship, view their separate and disjointed parts, and observe the pillars, doors, windows, cornices and turrets of the one, or the prow and stern, the ribs and masts, the ropes and shrouds, the sails and tackle of the other, he would be able to form but a very lame and dark idea of either of those excellent and useful inventions.
the dark problems of existence
dark money
Meantime we shall express our darker purpose
“Clarence, can you lend me three thousand pounds on good security and keep it dark from Connie?”
The first favourite was never heard of, the second favourite was never seen after the distance post, all the ten-to-oners were in the rear, and a dark horse which had never been thought of, and which the careless St. James had never even observed in the list, rushed past the grand stand in sweeping triumph.
Synonym: demonic
a dark villain
a dark deed
Left him at large to his own dark designs.
the Great Depression was a dark time
the film was a dark psychological thriller
A deep melancholy took possession of him, and gave a dark tinge to all his views of human nature.
There is, in every true woman's heart, a spark of heavenly fire, which beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity.
The dark ages began after the collapse of the Roman Empire.
The Greek Dark Ages began after the Bronze Age collapse.
The age wherein he lived was dark, but he Could not want light who taught the world to see.
The tenth century used to be reckoned by mediaeval historians as the darkest part of this intellectual night.
September 11, 2001, the day when four terrorist attacks destroyed the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, is often referred to as America's dark day.
The ending of this book is rather dark.
This show is full of dark humor.
Related words
synonyms
(relative lack of light): dim, gloomy, see also Thesaurus:dark
(sinister or secret): hidden, secret, sinister, see also Thesaurus:hidden
(without morals): malign, sinister, see also Thesaurus:evil
(of colour): deep, see also Thesaurus:dark colour
(conducive to hopelessness): hopeless, negative, pessimistic
(lacking progress): unenlightened
antonyms
(antonym(s) of "relative lack of light"): bright, light, lit
(antonym(s) of "of colour"): bright, light, pale
related terms
darken
darkling
darkness
Etimology
From Middle English derk, derke, dirke, dyrke, from the adjective (see above), or possibly from an unrecorded Old English *dierce, *diercu (“dark, darkness”).
noun
dark (usually uncountable, plural darks)
A complete or (more often) partial absence of light.
(uncountable) Ignorance.
(uncountable) Nightfall.
A dark shade or dark passage in a painting, engraving, etc.
Examples
Dark surrounds us completely.
Here stood he in the dark, his sharp sword out.
The face which emerged was not reassuring. It was blunt and grey, the nose springing thick and flat from high on the frontal bone of the forehead, whilst his eyes were narrow slits of dark in a tight bandage of tissue. […].
[Rural solar plant] schemes are of little help to industry or other heavy users of electricity. Nor is solar power yet as cheap as the grid. For all that, the rapid arrival of electric light to Indian villages is long overdue. When the national grid suffers its next huge outage, as it did in July 2012 when hundreds of millions were left in the dark, look for specks of light in the villages.
We kept him in the dark.
The lawyer was left in the dark as to why the jury was dismissed.
Look, what you do, you do it still i' th' dark.
Till we perceive it by our own understandings, we are as much in the dark, and as void of knowledge, as before.
It was after dark before we got to playing baseball.
The lights may serve for a repose to the darks, and the darks to the lights.
Related words
synonyms
(absence of light): darkness
(ignorance): cluelessness, knowledgelessness, unawareness
(nightfall): crepusculum, evenfall, mirkning; see also Thesaurus:dusk
Etimology
From Middle English derken, from Old English deorcian, from Proto-West Germanic *derkōn.
verb
dark (third-person singular simple present darks, present participle darking, simple past and past participle darked)
(intransitive) To grow or become dark, darken.
(intransitive) To remain in the dark, lurk, lie hidden or concealed.
(transitive) To make dark, darken; to obscure.
Examples
To dark is still used in Swaledale in the sense of to lie hid, as, 'Te rattens [rats] mun ha bin darkin whel nu [till now]; we hannot heerd tem tis last fortnith'.