BLACK-AND-WHITE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does black-and-white mean? 

• BLACK-AND-WHITE (adjective)
  The adjective BLACK-AND-WHITE has 3 senses:

1. lacking hue or shades of grey; part white and part black

2. not having or not capable of producing colors

3. of a situation that is sharply divided into mutually exclusive categories

  Familiarity information: BLACK-AND-WHITE used as an adjective is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BLACK-AND-WHITE (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Lacking hue or shades of grey; part white and part black

Classified under:

Relational adjectives (pertainyms)

Context example:

black-and-white stripes

Pertainym:

achromaticity (the visual property of being without chromatic color)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Not having or not capable of producing colors

Synonyms:

black-and-white; black and white

Context example:

the movie was in black and white

Domain category:

photography; picture taking (the act of taking and printing photographs)

Antonym:

color (having or capable of producing colors)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Of a situation that is sharply divided into mutually exclusive categories

Context example:

there were no grey areas, you were either for him or against him, he was all black-and-white

Similar:

divided (separated into parts or pieces)

 Context examples 

The rover used its black-and-white Navigation Cameras (Navcams) to snap images of drifting clouds on May 7 and May 12, 2019, sols 2400 and 2405.

(Curiosity Mars Rover Finds a Clay Cache, NASA)

This is an unusual month, clarifying your emotions by pushing them to either end of the spectrum, forming a black-and-white picture that you will find helpful.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

As I write this to you, I am thinking of the old black-and-white 1960s TV show Dragnet and Sargent Joe Friday, whose signature phrase was, Just the facts, ma’am. (According to Google, however, Sargent Friday never said those exact words, but everyone attributes the line to Sargent Friday.) Anyway, if you keep Joe Friday’s words in mind, you will do really well—focus on the facts.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)