Revised 2006

pitch blackadjective & noun

Etymology
Meaning & use
Frequency

Quotations

Hide all quotations

Factsheet

What does the word pitch black mean?

There are two meanings listed in OED's entry for the word pitch black. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

See meaning & use

How common is the word pitch black?

About 0.3occurrences per million words in modern written English

1800	0.0092
1810	0.018
1820	0.021
1830	0.024
1840	0.03
1850	0.037
1860	0.04
1870	0.042
1880	0.049
1890	0.061
1900	0.081
1910	0.11
1920	0.14
1930	0.17
1940	0.18
1950	0.18
1960	0.18
1970	0.19
1980	0.24
1990	0.3
2000	0.33
2010	0.38

See frequency

Where does the word pitch black come from?

Earliest known use

late 1500s

The earliest known use of the word pitch black is in the late 1500s.

OED's earliest evidence for pitch black is from 1598, in the writing of John Marston, poet and playwright.

pitch black is formed within English, by compounding.

Etymons: pitch n.1, black adj.

See etymology

Nearby entries

pitch-accented, adj.1920–
pit chamber, n.1917–
pitch-and-toss, n.1721–
pitch-and-toss, v.1882
pitch angle, n.1869–
pitch axis, n.1952–
pitch-back, adj.1825–
pitch-bag, n.1881
pitch battle, n.1673–
pitchbend, n.1982–
pitch black, adj. & n.1598–
pitch blackness, n.1857–
pitchblende, n.1770–
pitch block, n.1875–
pitchboard, n.¹1599
pitch-board, n.²1733–
pitch-boat, n.1867
pitch-boilery, n.1885
pitch brand, n.1545–
pitch brand, v.1593–
pitch-brown, adj.1850–

Browse more nearby entries

Etymology

Thank you for visiting Oxford English Dictionary

To continue reading, please sign in below or purchase a subscription. After purchasing, please sign in below to access the content.

View our subscription options

Personal account

Access or purchase personal subscriptions
Get our newsletter
Save searches
Set display preferences

Institutional access

Recommend to your librarian

Institutional account management

Meaning & use

Thank you for visiting Oxford English Dictionary

To continue reading, please sign in below or purchase a subscription. After purchasing, please sign in below to access the content.

View our subscription options

Personal account

Access or purchase personal subscriptions
Get our newsletter
Save searches
Set display preferences

Institutional access

Recommend to your librarian

Institutional account management

Frequency

Thank you for visiting Oxford English Dictionary

To continue reading, please sign in below or purchase a subscription. After purchasing, please sign in below to access the content.

View our subscription options

Personal account

Access or purchase personal subscriptions
Get our newsletter
Save searches
Set display preferences

Institutional access

Recommend to your librarian

Institutional account management

Entry history for pitch black, adj. & n.

Originally published as part of the entry for pitch, n.¹

pitch, n.¹ was revised in June 2006.

oed.com is a living text, updated every three months. Modifications may include:

further revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates;
new senses, phrases, and quotations.

Earlier versions of this entry were published in:

OED First Edition (1907)

Find out more

OED Second Edition (1989)

Find out more
View pitch, n.¹ in OED Second Edition

Cite

Chicago

Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “,” , .

Copied to clipboard

MLA9

“” Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, , .

Copied to clipboard

Select format to download citation

Contribute

Please submit your feedback for pitch black, adj. & n.

Please include your email address if you are happy to be contacted about your
feedback. OUP will not use this email address for any other purpose.

Section (required)

Feedback (required)

Citation details

Factsheet for pitch black, adj. & n.

Browse entry

Nearby entries

pitch-accented, adj.1920–
pit chamber, n.1917–
pitch-and-toss, n.1721–
pitch-and-toss, v.1882
pitch angle, n.1869–
pitch axis, n.1952–
pitch-back, adj.1825–
pitch-bag, n.1881
pitch battle, n.1673–
pitchbend, n.1982–
pitch black, adj. & n.1598–
pitch blackness, n.1857–
pitchblende, n.1770–
pitch block, n.1875–
pitchboard, n.¹1599
pitch-board, n.²1733–
pitch-boat, n.1867
pitch-boilery, n.1885
pitch brand, n.1545–
pitch brand, v.1593–
pitch-brown, adj.1850–

Browse more nearby entries