Japanese word

真っ黒

Pronunciation

Romajimakkuro

Meaning

  • na-adjectivepitch-black

Example

夜の空が真っ黒です。yoru no sora ga ma kkuro de su

The night sky is pitch-black.

Illustration for 真っ黒 (pitch-black)

More examples

停電で画面が真っ黒になっています。tei den de ga men ga ma kkuro ni na tte i ma su

The screen has gone pitch-black because of a power outage.

Core concept

Describes a surface, object, or scene as having an entirely black appearance, with no lighter shade noticeable.

Common phrases

  • 真っ黒な空ma kkuro na sora

    a pitch-black sky

  • 真っ黒な髪ma kkuro na kami

    pitch-black hair

Similar words

真っ暗makkura: Describes a place or scene that has no visible light and appears completely dark.

Definition in Japanese

色や光の反映がまったくないように黒いさま。iro ya hikari no han ei ga ma tta ku na i yō ni kuro i sa ma

Word origin

真っ黒 (makkuro) combines 真っ (ma-, "complete") with 黒 (kuro, "black"), using the intensifying prefix 真っ- to mean completely black.

Usage tips

  • The English phrase pitch-black uses pitch, a dark tar-like substance, to intensify black in much the same way that 真っ黒 (makkuro) intensifies 黒 (kuro).

Other meanings

  • blacknoun

Opposites

Related words

  • 真っ黒さmakkurosablacknessnoun

Word lists with this word