darkness

[ dahrk-nis ]

noun

1. the state or quality of being dark:

   The room was in total darkness.

2. absence or deficiency of light:

   the darkness of night.

3. wickedness or evil:

   Satan, the prince of darkness.

4. obscurity; concealment:

   The darkness of the metaphor destroyed its effectiveness.

5. lack of knowledge or enlightenment:

   heathen darkness.

6. lack of sight; blindness.

Other Words From

• pre·darkness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of darkness¹

First recorded before 1050; Middle English derknesse, Old English deorcnysse; equivalent to dark + -ness

Example Sentences

But captivating performances by Peake, Petticrew, Doupe and a fiery Boyle deliver us through the darkness of the days and years captured in its nine installments.

From Salon

We are deep in darkness, before a four-year storm that, according to those Trump has already appointed to his staff, will be replete with violence against immigrants, overwhelming tariffs, profuse and criminal lies, the further fracturing of our country, a desecration of the Constitution and many other forms of villainy — all of which will be conveniently blamed on Joe Biden and the Democrats in an unending stream of calumnious statements backed up by Elon Musk on his de facto state media operation.

From Salon

“For, while the tale of how we suffer, and how we are delighted, and how we may triumph is never new,” Baldwin wrote, “it always must be heard. There isn’t any other tale to tell, it’s the only light we’ve got in all this darkness.”

From Los Angeles Times

That was the darkness before the light for Dems: While Republicans won the Prop.

From Los Angeles Times

Because light always shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never comprehend that.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bleakness
• despair
• despondency
• dysphoria
• gloom
• grimness
• melancholy
• morbidity
• negativity