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Definition: Dark |
DarkAdjective1. Devoid or partially devoid of light or brightness; shadowed or black or somber-colored; "sitting in a dark corner"; "a dark day"; "dark shadows"; "the theater is dark on Mondays"; "dark as the inside of a black cat". 2. (used of color) having a dark hue; "dark green"; "dark glasses"; "dark colors like wine red or navy blue". 3. (used of hair or skin or eyes) "dark eyes". 4. Stemming from evil characteristics or forces; wicked or dishonorable; "black deeds"; "a black lie"; "his black heart has concocted yet another black deed"; "Darth Vader of the dark side"; "a dark purpose"; "dark undercurrents of ethnic hostility"; "the scheme of some sinister intelligence bent on punishing him"-Thomas Hardy. 5. Causing dejection; "a blue day"; "the dark days of the war"; "a week of rainy depressing weather"; "a disconsolate winter landscape"; "the first dismal dispiriting days of November"; "a dark gloomy day"; "grim rainy weather". 6. Secret; "keep it dark"; "the dark mysteries of Africa and the fabled wonders of the East". 7. Showing a brooding ill humor; "a dark scowl"; "the proverbially dour New England Puritan"; "a glum, hopeless shrug"; "he sat in moody silence"; "a morose and unsociable manner"; "a saturnine, almost misanthropic young genius"- Bruce Bliven; "a sour temper"; "a sullen crowd". 8. Lacking enlightenment or knowledge or culture; "this benighted country"; "benighted ages of barbarism and superstition"; "the dark ages"; "a dark age in the history of education". 9. Marked by difficulty of style or expression; "much that was dark is now quite clear to me"; "those who do not appreciate Kafka's work say his style is obscure". 10. : having skin rich in melanin pigments; "National Association for the Advancement of Colored People"; "the dark races"; "dark-skinned peoples". 11. : not giving performances; closed; "the theater is dark on Mondays". Noun1. Absence of light or illumination. 2. Absence of moral or spiritual values; "the powers of darkness". 3. An unilluminated area; "he moved off into the darkness". 4. The time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside. 5. An unenlightened state; "he was in the dark concerning their intentions"; "his lectures dispelled the darkness". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "dark" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1010. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Dream Interpretation | To dream of darkness overtaking you on a journey, augurs ill for any work you may attempt, unless the sun breaks through before the journey ends, then faults will be overcome. To lose your friend, or child, in the darkness, portends many provocations to wrath. Try to remain under control after dreaming of darkness, for trials in business and love will beset you. Source: Ten Thousand Dreams Interpreted .... |
Literature | Dark To keep dark. To lie perdu; to lurk in concealment. (Ang. Sax. deorc.) "We'd get away to some of the far-out stations ... where we could keep in the dark." - Boldrewood: Robbery Under Arms, xvi. Keep it in the dark. Keep it a dead secret; don't enlighten anyone about the matter. Source: Brewer's Dictionary. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Nature of Light
The term "light" (light beam or light ray) refers to the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum visible to the human eye, but can also include other forms of electromagnetic radiation. The three basic dimensions of light (and of all electromagnetic radiation) are brilliance (or amplitude), color (or frequency), and polarization (or angle of vibration). Due to wave-particle duality, light simultaneously exhibits properties of both waves and particles.
Theories About Light
- Particle Thoery
- First proposed by Isaac Newton in the seventeenth century
- Argues that light is made up of tiny particles of matter (corpuscles)
- <Discounted>
- Corpuscles are emitted in all directions
- <Discounted>
- Supports the fact that light is reflected
- Argues that light speeds up upon entering a denser medium because gravitational pull is greater
- <Discounted>
- Greatly discounted by wave theory
- Wave (or Ray) Theory
- First proposed by Christian Huygens in the seventeenth century
- Argues that light is emitted as a series of waves only
- <Discounted>
- Waves are emitted in all directions
- Waves not affected by gravity, so they slow down upon entering a denser medium
- Greatly discounted the corpuscular theory
- Can interfere with each other like sound waves (noted in eighteenth century by Thomas Young)
- Waves can be polarized
- Assumes that light needs a medium for transmission like sound
- <Discounted>
- Electromagnetic Theory
- Argues that light waves are electromagnetic and do not need a medium
- Proposed by James Clerk Maxwell at the end of the nineteenth century
- Shows that visible light is part of the electromagnetic spectrum
- Quantum (or Wave-particle duality) Theory
- Combines previous three theories
- Pioneered at end of the nineteenth century
- Max Planck proposed that light waves are made of packets of energy known as quanta or photons in 1900
- Light behaves as both particles and waves
Visible Light Wavelengths
Visible light is that portion of the spectrum between the wavelengths of about 400 nanometers (abbreviated nm) and 800 nm (in air). Light can also be characterized by its frequency. The frequency and wavelength of light obey the relation
The Speed of Light
Speed of Light Formula
where λ is the wavelength, f is the frequency, v is the speed of the light. If the light is travelling in a vacuum, then v = c, thus
- ,
where c is the speed of light. We can express v as
- ,
where n is a constant (the refractive index) which is a property of the material through which the light is passing.
Change to the Speed of Light
All light propagates at a finite speed. Even moving observers always measure the same value of c, the speed of light in vacuum, as c = 299,792,458 metres per second; however, when light passes through a transparent substance such as air, water or glass, its speed is reduced, and it suffers refraction. Thus, n=1 in a vacuum and n>1 in matter. It is a violation of the technical terminology of physics to speak of the "velocity of light;" velocity is reserved for a different use.
History of the Speed of Light
The speed of light has been measured many times, by many physicists. The best early measurement is Olaus Roemer's (a Danish physicist), in 1676. He had developed a method for measuring light. He observed and noted the motions of Jupiter and one of its moonss with a telescope. It was possible to time the revolution of the moon because it was eclipsed by Jupiter at regular intervals. Roemer discovered that the moon revolved around Jupiter once every 42-1/2 hours when Earth was closest to Jupiter. The problem was that when Earth and Jupiter were not as close, the moon's revolution seemed to be more. It was clear that light took longer to reach Earth when it was farther away from Jupiter. The speed of light was calculated by analyzing the distance between the two planets at various times. Roemer reached a speed of 227,000 kilometers per second (approximately 141,050 miles per second).
Albert A. Michelson improved on Roemer's work in 1926. He used rotating mirrors to measure the time it took light to make a round trip from Mt. Wilson to Mt. San Antonio in California. The precise measurements yielded a speed of 186,285 miles/second (299,796 kilometers/second). In daily use, the figures are rounded off to 186,000 mi/sec and 300,000 km/sec.
Optics
The study of light and the interaction of light and matter is termed optics. The observation and study of optical phenomena such as rainbows offers many clues as to the nature of light as well as much enjoyment.
Color and Wavelengths
The different wavelengths are interpreted by the human brain as colors, ranging from red at the longest wavelengths (lowest frequencies) to violet at the shortest wavelengths (highest frequencies). The intervening frequencies are seen as orange, yellow, green, blue, and, conventionally, indigo. The frequencies of the spectrum immediately outside the range the human eye is able to perceive are called ultraviolet (UV) at the high frequency end and infrared (IR) at the low. Though humans cannot see IR, we do perceive it by receptors in the skin as heat. Cameras that can pick up IR and convert it to visible light are called night-vision cameras. UV radiation is not perceived by humans at all except in a very delayed fashion, as overexposure of the skin to UV light causes sunburn, or skin cancer. Some animals, such as bees, can see UV radiation while others, such as pit viper snakes, can see IR using pits in their heads.
Measurement of Light
The following quantities and units are used to measure light.
- brightness (or temperature)
- illuminance or illumination (SI unit: lux)
- luminous flux (SI unit: lumen)
- luminous intensity (SI unit: candela)
Light Sources
- thermal radiation (black body radiation)
- incandescent light bulbs
- sunlight
- glowing solid particles in flames (see fire)
- atomic spectral emission (emission lines can either be stimulated or spontaneous)
- laser and maser (stimulated emission)
- light emitting diodes
- gas discharge lamps (neon signs, mercury lamps, etc)
- flames (light from the hot gas itself, see also above)
- acceleration of a free charged particle (usually an electron)
- cyclotron radiation
- Bremsstrahlung radiation
- Cherenkov radiation
- chemoluminescence
- fluorescence
- phosphorescence
- cathode ray tube
- bioluminescence
- sonoluminescence
- triboluminescence
- radioactive decay
- particle-antiparticle annihilation
Light Waves
A light wave
See also: Huygens' principle, Color temperature, Illumination, International Commission on Illumination, Wave-particle duality, Light pollution, photic sneeze reflex
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Light."
| The following table is compiled from various sources, across various languages. When English abbreviations or acronyms come from a non-English source, this is noted. | |||
| Entry | Source | Expression | Field |
| DAMA | English | Dark Matter Search | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |||
Synonyms: DarkSynonyms: benighted (adj), black (adj), blue (adj), colored (adj), coloured (adj), dark-skinned (adj), depressing (adj), disconsolate (adj), dismal (adj), dispiriting (adj), dour (adj), gloomy (adj), glowering (adj), glum (adj), grim (adj), moody (adj), morose (adj), obscure (adj), saturnine (adj), sinister (adj), sour (adj), sullen (adj), darkness (n), iniquity (n), night (n), nighttime (n), shadow (n), wickedness (n). (additional references) |
| Antonyms: day (n), light (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Concealment | Adjective: concealed; Verb: hidden; secret, recondite, mystic, cabalistic, occult, dark; cryptic, cryptical; private, privy, in petto, auricular, clandestine, close, inviolate; tortuous. |
Dejection | Adjective: cheerless, joyless, spiritless; uncheerful, uncheery; unlively; unhappy; melancholy, dismal, somber, dark, gloomy, triste, clouded, murky, lowering, frowning, lugubrious, funereal, mournful, lamentable, dreadful. |
Hopelessness | Phrase: "lasciate ogni speranza voi ch'entrate"; its days are numbered; the worst come to the worst; "no change, no pause, no hope, yet I endure"; "O dark, dark, dark, amid the blaze of noon"; "mene mene tekel upharson". |
Improbity | False-hearted, disingenuous; unfair, one-sided; double, double-hearted, double-tongued, double-faced; timeserving, crooked, tortuous,insidious, Machiavelian, dark, slippery; fishy; perfidious, treacherous, perjured. |
Latency Implication | Unapparent, unknown, unseen; in the background; invisible; indiscoverable, dark; impenetrable; (unintelligible); unspied, unsuspected. |
Unintelligibility | Obscure, dark, muddy, clear as mud, seen through a mist, dim, nebulous, shrouded in mystery; opaque, dense; undiscernible; (invisible); misty; (opaque); hidden; latent. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Dark |
| English words defined with "dark": dark blue, dark field illumination, dark ground illumination, Dark sentence. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "dark": Aston dark space ♦ dark blips, Dark Continent, DARK CULLY, dark field microscope, dark ground, dark nilas, DARK SURGE ON DISK, dark trace tube ♦ Faraday dark space ♦ Leap in the Dark. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "dark": rubidium. (references) |
| Non-English Usage: "Dark" is also a word in the following language with the English translation in parentheses. German (dunkel). |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | Who will take care of me my love, my dark angel, when you are gone (Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles; writing credit: Anne Rice) You see, this is my life! It always will be! Nothing else! Just us, the cameras, and those wonderful people out there in the dark! All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up (Sunset Blvd.; writing credit: Charles Brackett) It's 106 miles to Chicago, we've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark and we're wearing sunglasses (The Blues Brothers; writing credit: Dan Aykroyd and John Landis.) Dark have been my days of late (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers; writing credit: Frances Walsh) When Chekhov saw the long winter, he saw a winter bleak and dark and bereft of hope (Groundhog Day; writing credit: Guy Ritchie) | |
Lyrics | Coming out of the dark, I know the love that saved me (COMING OUT OF THE DARK; performing artist: Gloria Estefan) Dark and metric is my town, (Dark and Metric; performing artist: They Might Be Giants) They were smooching in the dark (The Dean And I; performing artist: 10CC) I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon (Kryptonite; performing artist: 3 Doors Down) I followed daylight right into the dark (Sunshine; performing artist: Aerosmith) | |
Clever | Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read. (references; author: Groucho Marx) Foot: A device for finding furniture in the dark. (references; author: unknown) Even the smallest candle burns brighter in the dark. (references; author: unknown) Your smile lights up a room like a candle in the dark. (references; author: unknown) Equal amounts of dark chocolate and white chocolate is a balanced diet. (references; author: unknown) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Dark City (1998) Incident on a Dark Street (1973) Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (1973) Dark Places (1973) Bright and Dark Lisa (1973) | |
Song Titles | Coming Out Of The Dark (performing artist: Gloria Estefan) On The Dark Side (performing artist: John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band) Whistling In The Dark (performing artist: They Might Be Giants) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
References | |||
Books |
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Periodicals |
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Theater & Movies | |||
Music |
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High Tech |
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Consumer Goods | |||
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
The earliest visible stage of HIV replication occurs when viral proteins accumulate under the cell membrane in a process called budding (a). In the next stage a crescent shaped early bud has constricted, forming a membrane-encapsulated sphere, with the dense center called a viral nucleoid (b). As the constricting process continues, the virus pinches off and becomes free extracellular infectious virus (c). At this stage, the dark circular mucleoid condenses into a bar; this morphologic feature is used to discriminate HIV-I from HTLV-II and HTLV-III. See artwork: GR-31. Credit: Dr. Matthew Gonda (photographer). | Pictured are instruments used in endoscopy. They are highlighted in an otherwise dark picture and lying on a textured cloth. Shown are flexible fibers, a small brush and a third instrument in some photos. The fibers transmit high intensity light through the endoscope shown. The brushes are used to take biopsies. Credit: Linda Bartlett (photographer). | ||
A blocked flea, i.e. dark spots in stomach, is unable to ingest its blood meal because of a mass of bacteria within the proventriculus, preventing passage of food from the esophagus to the stomach. Credit: CDC. | Common characteristics of Anopheles crucians are long, black proboscis, the palpus is a little shorter than probiscis, and a pair of dark gray submedian longitudinal stripes on the thorax. This mosquito may be a vector for malaria. Credit: CDC. | ||
Tightly wound, almost concentric, arms of dark dust encircle the bright nucleus of the galaxy ... Credit: NASA. | Strangely glowing dark clouds float serenely in this remarkable and beautiful image taken with ... Credit: NASA. | ||
![]() | Color image of Neptune showing its "Great Dark Spot". Credit: NASA. | ![]() | Closer view of the Great Dark Spot and the "scooter". Credit: NASA. |
![]() | Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. The Bald Eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, adults (more than 5 years old) are unmistakable with dark brown plumage except for white head, neck and tails. The beak, eyes, legs, and feet are yellow. Wing span up to 2.5 meters, with females considerably larger than males. Immature eagles lack white plumage and yellow accents. Credit: National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERR). | ![]() | North Inlet - Winyah Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. A very dark color variation of the southern flounder, Paralicthys legostigma. Both sides of this fish are darkly pigmented. Only the head on the ventral side shows the traditional light color. Credit: National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERR). |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
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| "Cars with dark sky" by Nadine Toussaint Commentary: "Another pic with the smokey sky caused by the fires in cali.." | "Dark" by Jan Klau Commentary: "Just playing around with photoshop...." |
Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers. | |
| Play | Caption | Play | Caption |
| Dark; night; woods; wolf; full moon; witching hour. | Fog horn, lighthouse; shipping; ocean; ship; fog; dark; lost at sea; storm. | ||
| Clock tower; midnight; wolf; witching hour; ominous; apocalyptic; augural; baleful; baneful; clouded; dangerous; dark; dire; direful; dismal; doomed; doomful; fateful; fearful; forbidding; gloomy; grim; haunting; hostile; ill-boding; ill-fated; impending. | |||
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Dwight L. Moody | Character is what you are in the dark. |
Francis Bacon | All colors will agree in the dark. |
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow | Into each life some rain must fall, some days be dark and dreary. |
Nathaniel Hawthorne | What other dungeon is so dark as one's own heart! |
O. Henry | Turn up the lights. I don't want to go home in the dark. |
Thomas Carlyle | The eternal stars shine out as soon as it is dark enough. |
Tori Amos | The dark side is not something most people think is inside them. |
Virgil | What if Amyntas is dark? Violets are dark, too, and hyacinths. |
Walt Whitman | Every moment of light and dark is a miracle. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Author | Date | Quotation |
Winston S. Churchill | 1946 | The dark ages may return, the Stone Age may return on the gleaming wings of science, and what might now shower immeasurable material blessings upon mankind, may even bring about its total destruction. ("Iron Curtain" Speech) |
John F. Kennedy | 1961 | Finally, to those nations who would make themselves our adversary, we offer not a pledge but a request: that both sides begin anew the quest for peace, before the dark powers of destruction unleashed by science engulf all humanity in planned or accidental self-destruction. (reference) |
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. | 1963 | Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. (Delivered on the steps at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. on August 28, 1929) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Title | Author | Quote |
Emma | Austen, Jane | As to any thing superior for you, I suppose she is quite in the dark. |
Sylvie and Bruno Concluded | Carroll, Lewis | The Professor rapidly arranged them in two rows, so as to make a dark passage, leading straight from the door to the mouth of the cage |
A Christmas Carol | Dickens, Charles | The yard was so dark that even Scrooge, who knew its every stone, was fain to grope with his hands |
Scarlet Letter | Hawthorne, Nathaniel | Yet did the physician, in his dark way, creep frightfully near the secret |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | It was a sickening smile, for the corners of her mouth were stained with blood, and a dark cavity revealed itself there |
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man | Joyce, James | Soon all would be dark and sleeping |
Time Enough for Love | Robert Heinlein | Place your clothes and weapons where you can find them in the dark. |
Grapes of Wrath | Steinbeck, John | And in the growing year the warmth grows and the leaves turn dark green |
Walden | Thoreau, Henry David | It was dark, and had a dirt floor for the most part, dank, clammy, and aguish, only here a board and there a board which would not bear removal |
Sonnets | William Shakespeare | I have sworn thee fair, and thought thee bright, Who art as black as hell, as dark as night |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | Look at the things listed in dark print below. (references) | |
Pigment stones are small, dark stones made of bilirubin. (references) | ||
In persons with dark hair, the adult louse will look darker. (references) | ||
Business | For any season, dark conservative colors are the most popular. (references) | |
Although negotiations are gathering pace, international oil companies remain in the dark about their tax burden on profits, especially on gas production. (references) | ||
Civil Liberties | Dominican Republic | They approach persons who look like Haitians, including persons who have very dark complexions and fairly poor clothing. (references) |
Sri Lanka | The Constitution grants every citizen "freedom of movement and of choosing his residence" and "freedom to return to [the country]," and the Government generally respects the right to domestic and foreign travel; however, the war with the LTTE prompted the Government to impose more stringent checks on travelers from the north and the east and on movement in Colombo, particularly after dark. (references) | |
Economic History | Philippines | The main wheat classes purchased from the U.S. are Dark Northern Spring and Western White. (references) |
Human Rights | Nicaragua | Some prisons and many police holding cells were dark, poorly ventilated, and unhygienic. (references) |
Cambodia | Use of shackles and the practice of holding prisoners in small, dark cells continued in some prisons after escape attempts. (references) | |
Cameroon | The officer must have a warrant to make such a search after dark; however, a police officer may enter a private home at any time in pursuit of a criminal observed committing a crime. (references) | |
Minorities | Russia | Law enforcement authorities also targeted persons with dark complexions for harassment, arrest, and deportation from urban centers. (references) |
Russia | Police reportedly beat, harassed, and demanded bribes from persons with dark skin, or who appeared to be from the Caucasus, Central Asia, or Africa. (references) | |
Argentina | Individuals of indigenous descent from the northern part of the country, as well as from Bolivia, Peru, and other Latin American countries, reportedly are also frequently subject to verbal insults because of their dark skin. (references) | |
Political Economy | Georgia | Georgia emerged from the dark winter of 2000, plagued by a gas cut-off by Russia and a drought, which reduced hydropower. (references) |
Trade | Ecuador | Since September 1998, new excise taxes are levied on all liquor (26.78 percent), beer (30.9 percent), soft drinks (10.3 percent), cigarettes (light 77.25 percent, dark 18.54 percent), motor vehicles up to 3 tons (5.15 percent), aircraft, helicopters, and ships (10.3 percent). (references) |
Travel | Liberia | Travel anywhere in Liberia after dark is discouraged. (references) |
Women | Marshall Islands | Violence against women outside the family occurs, and women in urban centers risk assault by going out alone after dark. (references) |
Niger | Among the Hausa and Peul ethnic groups in the east, some women are cloistered and may leave their homes only if escorted by a male and usually only after dark. (references) | |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | STORY, n. A narrative, commonly untrue. The truth of the stories here following has, however, not been successfully impeached. One evening Mr. Rudolph Block, of New York, found himself seated at dinner alongside Mr. Percival Pollard, the distinguished critic. "Mr. Pollard," said he, "my book, The Biography of a Dead Cow, is published anonymously, but you can hardly be ignorant of its authorship. Yet in reviewing it you speak of it as the work of the Idiot of the Century. Do you think that fair criticism?" "I am very sorry, sir," replied the critic, amiably, "but it did not occur to me that you really might not wish the public to know who wrote it." Mr. W.C. Morrow, who used to live in San Jose, California, was addicted to writing ghost stories which made the reader feel as if a stream of lizards, fresh from the ice, were streaking it up his back and hiding in his hair. San Jose was at that time believed to be haunted by the visible spirit of a noted bandit named Vasquez, who had been hanged there. The town was not very well lighted, and it is putting it mildly to say that San Jose was reluctant to be out o' nights. One particularly dark night two gentlemen were abroad in the loneliest spot within the city limits, talking loudly to keep up their courage, when they came upon Mr. J.J. Owen, a well-known journalist. "Why, Owen," said one, "what brings you here on such a night as this? You told me that this is one of Vasquez' favorite haunts! And you are a believer. Aren't you afraid to be out?" "My dear fellow," the journalist replied with a drear autumnal cadence in his speech, like the moan of a leaf-laden wind, "I am afraid to be in. I have one of Will Morrow's stories in my pocket and I don't dare to go where there is light enough to read it." Rear-Admiral Schley and Representative Charles F. Joy were standing near the Peace Monument, in Washington, discussing the question, Is success a failure? Mr. Joy suddenly broke off in the middle of an eloquent sentence, exclaiming: "Hello! I've heard that band before. Santlemann's, I think." "I don't hear any band," said Schley. "Come to think, I don't either," said Joy; "but I see General Miles coming down the avenue, and that pageant always affects me in the same way as a brass band. One has to scrutinize one's impressions pretty closely, or one will mistake their origin." While the Admiral was digesting this hasty meal of philosophy General Miles passed in review, a spectacle of impressive dignity. When the tail of the seeming procession had passed and the two observers had recovered from the transient blindness caused by its effulgence -- "He seems to be enjoying himself," said the Admiral. "There is nothing," assented Joy, thoughtfully, "that he enjoys one-half so well." The illustrious statesman, Champ Clark, once lived about a mile from the village of Jebigue, in Missouri. One day he rode into town on a favorite mule, and, hitching the beast on the sunny side of a street, in front of a saloon, he went inside in his character of teetotaler, to apprise the barkeeper that wine is a mocker. It was a dreadfully hot day. Pretty soon a neighbor came in and seeing Clark, said: "Champ, it is not right to leave that mule out there in the sun. He'll roast, sure! -- he was smoking as I passed him." "O, he's all right," said Clark, lightly; "he's an inveterate smoker." The neighbor took a lemonade, but shook his head and repeated that it was not right. He was a conspirator. There had been a fire the night before: a stable just around the corner had burned and a number of horses had put on their immortality, among them a young colt, which was roasted to a rich nut-brown. Some of the boys had turned Mr. Clark's mule loose and substituted the mortal part of the colt. Presently another man entered the saloon. "For mercy's sake!" he said, taking it with sugar, "do remove that mule, barkeeper: it smells." "Yes," interposed Clark, "that animal has the best nose in Missouri. But if he doesn't mind, you shouldn't." In the course of human events Mr. Clark went out, and there, apparently, lay the incinerated and shrunken remains of his charger. The boys idd not have any fun out of Mr. Clarke, who looked at the body and, with the non-committal expression to which he owes so much of his political preferment, went away. But walking home late that night he saw his mule standing silent and solemn by the wayside in the misty moonlight. Mentioning the name of Helen Blazes with uncommon emphasis, Mr. Clark took the back track as hard as ever he could hook it, and passed the night in town. General H.H. Wotherspoon, president of the Army War College, has a pet rib-nosed baboon, an animal of uncommon intelligence but imperfectly beautiful. Returning to his apartment one evening, the General was surprised and pained to find Adam (for so the creature is named, the general being a Darwinian) sitting up for him and wearing his master's best uniform coat, epaulettes and all. "You confounded remote ancestor!" thundered the great strategist, "what do you mean by being out of bed after naps? -- and with my coat on!" Adam rose and with a reproachful look got down on all fours in the manner of his kind and, scuffling across the room to a table, returned with a visiting-card: General Barry had called and, judging by an empty champagne bottle and several cigar-stumps, had been hospitably entertained while waiting. The general apologized to his faithful progenitor and retired. The next day he met General Barry, who said: "Spoon, old man, when leaving you last evening I forgot to ask you about those excellent cigars. Where did you get them?" General Wotherspoon did not deign to reply, but walked away. "Pardon me, please," said Barry, moving after him; "I was joking of course. Why, I knew it was not you before I had been in the room fifteen minutes." |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Phrase(s) |
Marla Hanson | Well, it was the perfect place. It was dark and moody and artsy. And I thought, well, what a place to contemplate life or death. |
Paul Burrell | In the court room. He beckoned me to come out of the dark, which is the place you sit surrounded by glass. And I stepped out of the dark and went to him. He said, the queen's stopped the trial. I literally embraced him and cried. |
Rush Limbaugh | Democrats Are Leaving Dark Side In Droves: According to our audience research, conversions like Mark's are happening in tremendous numbers all across the fruited plain. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
James Monroe | 1817-1825 | If kept in the dark, they must be incompetent to it. |
Dwight Eisenhower | 1953-1961 | The designs of that power, dark in purpose, are clear in practice. |
Richard Nixon | 1969-1974 | But as our eyes catch the dimness of the first rays of dawn, let us not curse the remaining dark. |
Ronald Reagan | 1981-1989 | Every blow we inflict against poverty will be a blow against its dark allies of oppression and war. |
George Bush | 1989-1993 | As Americans, we know there are times when we must step forward and accept our responsibility to lead the world away from the dark chaos of dictators, toward the bright promise of a better day. |
Bill Clinton | 1993-2001 | We cannot, we will not, succumb to the dark impulses that lurk in the far regions of the soul everywhere. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Dark" is generally used as an adjective (general or positive) -- approximately 84.02% of the time. "Dark" is used about 8,047 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Adjective (general or positive) | 84.02% | 6,762 | 1,425 |
| Noun (singular) | 12.19% | 981 | 7,463 |
| Noun (proper) | 3.79% | 305 | 16,573 |
| Total | 100.00% | 8,047 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| The following table summarizes the usage of "dark" based on a population census conducted in the United States. Ranks and frequencies are based on all names reported and classified. |
| Name | Usage/Gender | Usage per 100 million Persons | Rank in USA |
| Dark | Last name | 1,000 | 9,044 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits. | |||
Expressions using "dark": A dark horse ♦ a dark purpose ♦ a leap in the dark ♦ a shot in the dark ♦ afraid of the dark ♦ after dark ♦ as dark as pitch ♦ Aston dark space ♦ at dark ♦ be dark ♦ be in the dark ♦ be in the dark about smth. ♦ become dark ♦ before dark ♦ dark adaptation ♦ dark age ♦ dark ages ♦ dark beer ♦ dark blue ♦ dark box ♦ dark bread ♦ dark brown ♦ dark burn ♦ dark chocolate ♦ dark cloud ♦ dark continent ♦ dark cutch ♦ dark day ♦ dark eyes ♦ dark fiber ♦ dark fibre ♦ dark field ♦ dark field illumination ♦ dark field microscope ♦ dark forces ♦ dark glass ♦ dark glasses ♦ dark green ♦ dark grey ♦ dark ground illumination ♦ dark heart ♦ dark horse ♦ Dark house ♦ dark lantern ♦ dark man ♦ Dark Matter Search ♦ dark meat ♦ dark nilas ♦ dark of the moon ♦ dark red ♦ dark red silver ore ♦ dark room ♦ dark ruby silver ♦ dark rye bread ♦ Dark sentence ♦ dark side ♦ dark side of the moon ♦ dark slide ♦ dark suit ♦ dark thoughts ♦ every dark cloud has a silver lining ♦ Faraday dark space ♦ get dark ♦ go grope one's way in the dark ♦ grope in the dark ♦ grow dark ♦ in the dark ♦ it is dark ♦ it is getting dark ♦ it is pitch dark ♦ it's getting dark ♦ it's pitch dark here ♦ keep dark ♦ keep in dark ♦ keep in the dark ♦ keep it dark ♦ keep smb. in the dark ♦ keep smth. dark ♦ leap in the dark ♦ leave smb. in the dark ♦ life's dark side ♦ look on the dark side of things ♦ make dark ♦ pitch dark ♦ take a leap in the dark ♦ the dark ♦ the dark ages ♦ The Dark and Bloody Ground ♦ the dark blues ♦ The dark day ♦ the dark race ♦ To keep dark ♦ when it got dark. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "dark": dark-age, dark-avised, dark-backed, dark-background, dark-beamed, dark-bearded, dark-bellied, dark-blond, dark-blonde, dark-blue, dark-blues, dark-bottomed, dark-breasted, dark-browed, dark-brown, dark-burnt, dark-capped, dark-clad, dark-cloaked, dark-clothed, dark-coated, dark-coloured, dark-complected, dark-complexioned, dark-corner, dark-current, dark-curtained, dark-dark-grey, dark-dressed, dark-eyed, dark-eyed junco, dark-faced, dark-feathered, dark-featured, dark-field, dark-field microscope, dark-flowing, dark-framed, dark-fringed, dark-furred, dark-glass, dark-glassed, dark-gold, dark-gowned, dark-green, dark-greens, dark-grey, dark-ground, dark-haired, dark-haired man, dark-hared, dark-headed, dark-hole-eyed, dark-hued, dark-humoured, dark-i, dark-jacketed, dark-lashed, dark-leafed, dark-leaved, dark-legged, dark-light, dark-lined, dark-looking, dark-matter, dark-natured, dark-nippled, dark-packed, dark-painted, dark-panelled, dark-pastoral, dark-pillared, dark-pupilled, dark-purple, dark-red, dark-rimmed, dark-ringed, dark-ringleted, dark-robed, dark-room, dark-rose-and-amber, dark-scarlet, dark-shadowed, dark-ship, dark-side hacker, dark-skinned, Dark-Sky, dark-spotted, dark-stained, dark-stockinged, dark-stone, dark-stoned, dark-striped, dark-suited, dark-swollen, dark-tanned, dark-tasting, dark-thoughted, dark-timbre, dark-tipped, dark-toned, dark-vowelled, dark-walled, dark-windowed, dark-winged, dark-wood, dark-wooled, dark-yellow. | |
Ending with "dark": after-dark, all-dark, Beaumont-dark, light-dark, night-dark, semi-dark, wine-dark. | |
Containing "dark": beige-and-dark-brown, medium-dark-grey, pink-and-dark-green. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day | Expression | Frequency per Day |
dark angel | 2,165 | dark magician | 329 |
2 cloud dark | 2,072 | dark alliance | 304 |
dark age camelot | 2,056 | glow in the dark | 299 |
dark cloud | 1,522 | gauntlet dark legacy | 290 |
dark art | 1,039 | cheat cloud dark | 285 |
dark | 952 | dark wanderer | 285 |
dark girl magician | 866 | bbs dark | 274 |
dark shadow | 816 | dark side of the moon | 247 |
dark horizon | 807 | dark tower | 241 |
perfect dark | 665 | dark blue | 225 |
anita dark | 661 | dark horse comic | 218 |
2 cloud dark through walk | 616 | after dark game | 210 |
dark age | 493 | collection dark | 187 |
dark cavern | 487 | dark crystal | 184 |
alone in the dark | 467 | dark lotus | 183 |
2 cheat cloud dark | 389 | dark matter | 178 |
dark poetry | 389 | cheat dark duel gi oh story yu | 177 |
after dark | 383 | dark star orchestra | 176 |
cloud dark through walk | 344 | dark circle under eyes | 169 |
baldurs gate dark alliance | 332 | dark lyrics | 167 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Translations for "dark"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Afrikaans | duister (dim), donker (bleak, dim, dismal, dreary). (various references) | |
Albanian | i ulët (base, contemptible, deep, down, gentle, give away, humble, ignoble, infamous, low, low down, low lying, lowly, mean, modest, nasty, nefarious, petty, primary, rascally, scrubby, scurvy, shoddy, subdued, vile, villainous, vulgar), hije (apparition, background, cloud, color, colour, ghost, loom, phantasm, phantom, propriety, reflection, reflexion, shade, shadow, spirit, spook, umbra, wraith), i çuditshëm (bizarre, cranky, curious, eccentric, electric, erratic, extraordinary, fanciful, fantastic, fantastical, frabjous, freak, freakish, funny, grotesque, kinky, odd, oddish, off beat, outlandish, peculiar, pixilated, puzzling, quaint, queer, quizzical, rummy, strange, surprising, uncanny, unco, unnatural, unusual, viewy, way out, weird, whimsical), i errët (abstruse, addle, ambiguous, arcane, black, blind, cloudy, darkling, darksome, deep, delphian, delphic, dim, dingy, dusky, foggy, fuscous, gloomy, indeterminate, inky, low-browed, mirk, misted, muddy, murk, murky, nebulous, nigrescent, obscure, opaque, recondite, sable, sad, secret, shady, somber, sombre, tenebrous), i fshehtë (backdoor, clandestine, close, colorable, colourable, confidential, cryptic, deep, deep-seated, elfish, elvish, esoteric, furtive, hidden, hole-and-corner, insidious, internal, latent, occult, Perdue, private, privy, quiet, secret, secretive, sly, stealthy, subterranean, under the counter, under the table, under wraps, undercover, underhand, underhanded, unearthly, veiled), i keq (bad, bad tempered, baleful, blinking, bodeful, cancerous, catty, cheesy, crook, defective, dubious, evil, heavy, ill, ill disposed, ill natured, ill-conditioned, lousy, low-grade, malign, malignant, nasty, naughty, perverse, poor, punk, shady, shoddy, sinister, ugly, vicious, vile, wicked), i ngrysur (dismal, farouche, gloomy, heavy, lowering, lugubrious, morose, saturnine, somber, sombre, sulky, sullen, woebegone), i paedukuar (ignoramus, ill bred, ill mannered, illiberal, indocile, inurbane, mannerless, rude, uneducated, unenlightened, unintelligent, unlearned, unmannerly, unnurtured, unschooled, untaught, untrained, untutored, without cultural interests), i pandershëm (base, conscienceless, devious, dirty, dishonest, disreputable, ill gotten, knavish, mean, rascally, raw, roguish, unfaithful, unscrupulous, unsportsmanlike), errësi (darkness), i trishtuar (blue, cheerless, comfortless, disappointed, disappointing, doleful, down, dreary, elegiac, funereal, gloomy, grievous, joyless, lugubrious, melancholy, minor, mirthless, miserable, mopish, mournful, pensive, rueful, sad, tristful, unhappy, vapoury, wailful, wan, wistful, woebegone, woeful, woesome), zeshkan (Brown, swarthy), i zeshkët (swart, swarthy), i zymtë (black, cheerless, crepuscular, depressed, dismal, dour, drab, dreary, eerie, funeral, funereal, gloomy, glum, grim, heavy, leaden, macabre, mirk, mirthless, morose, mournful, muddy, murk, sad, sepulchral, somber, sombre, spleenful, stark, sulky, sullen, surly, tenebrous, winterly, wintry), injorancë (ignorance, nescience), muzg (afterglow, dusk, duskiness, gloaming, nightfall, owl-light, shadow, sunset, twilight), natë (darkness, night, nighttime), padije (nescience), padituri (ignorance), terr (darkness, mirk, murk, obscurity, opaque), i paqartë (abstract, dim, doubtful, dubious, dusky, evasive, inarticulate, indefinite, indeterminate, indistinct, muddy, nebulous, obscure, out of focus, recondite, shadowy, uncertain, unclear, undistinguishable, undistinguished, unknowable, unreadable, vague). (various references) | |
Arabic | كئيب (bleak, blue, cheerless, damp, dejected, depressed, depressing, depressive, desolate, disconsolate, dismal, dispirited, distressful, distressing, doleful, dolorous, down, downcast, down-hearted, drear, dreary, droopy, dyspeptic, funeral, funereal, gloomy, glum, gray, grey, grief-stricken, grieved, grievous, heavy-hearted, ill, joyless, leaden, lifeless, low-spirited, melancholic, melancholy, moody, mournful, out of spirits, rueful, sad, saddening, somber, sombre, spiritless, sullen, tearful, weary), مكفهر (cloudy, dusky, gloomy, overcast, surly), مكان مظلم (darkness, gloom), معتم (cloud-capped, cloudy, dim, dusk, dusky, gloomy, murky, obscure, overcast), مظلم (black, dim, dun, dusk, gloomy, mirk, murk, murky, obscure, overcast, tenebrous), مبهم (abstruse, ambiguous, cryptic, dim, enigmatic, equivocal, hazy, impenetrable, incomprehensible, inscrutable, misty, mysterious, mystic, obscure, recondite, unclear, unfathomable, unintelligible, vague), لون قاتم, قاتم (black, cloudy, deep, dim, dusky, gloomy, murky, overcast, sable), غبش (dusk, penumbra, twilight), عتمة (darkness, dimness, shade, sombreness), عابس الوجه, خبيث (bad, black-hearted, evil, evil-minded, malevolent, malicious, malignant, pernicious, rake, roue, sly, vicious, viperous, virulent, vulpine, wicked, wily), ظلام (blackness, gloom, gloominess, mirk, murk, night, obscurity, sadness, shade), شرير (bad, black, black-hearted, devil, diabolic, diabolical, evil, ill, iniquitous, maleficent, malicious, malign, nasty, naughty, rascally, reprobate, rogue, roguish, rude, sinister, spiteful, unholy, vicious, wicked), داكن (blackish, deep, dingy, dirty, dusky, leaden, sad, swarthy). (various references) | |
Basque | ilundu (dark to be, night to be). (various references) | |
Bavarian | dung (bleak, dismal, dreary). (various references) | |
Blackfoot | siká'saokkoyi (dark bay horse). (various references) | |
Bulgarian | скришен (darkling), тъмнина (blackness, darkness, obscurity, shades, shadows, the opaque), тъмен (black, blackish, cimmerian, darkling, darksome, deep, dense, dusk, dusky, esoteric, fuscous, inky, low-browed, murky, neutral, obscure, opaque, overcast, sad, shady, somber, sombre, sooty, unlit), таен (arcane, backdoor, clandestine, confidential, cryptic, darkling, esoteric, hole-and-corner, hugger mugger, hush hush, inside, mystic, occult, private, privy, recondite, secret, sensitive, sneaking, snug, surreptitious, undercover, underground, underhand), неясен (abstruse, ambiguous, amorphous, blear, bleary, confused, crepuscular, doubtful, dreamy, dusk, fuzzy, hazy, illegible, inarticulate, indecisive, indefinable, indefinite, indistinct, intangible, involved, inward, loose, misty, muddy, muzzy, nebulous, obscure, pale, recondite, shadowy, soft, transcendental, ulterior, unclear, undecided, unformed, vague, vapory, vapoury, wan, woolly), непросветен (heathen, natural, unenlightened), намръщен (frowning, rugged, sulky), мургав (dusk, dusky, nigrescent, nut-brown, olive, swart, swarthy), мрак (darkness, gloom, mirk, murk, night, obscurity, opacity, opaqueness, shades, shadows, the opaque), жесток (bestial, bloody, butcherly, cruel, diabolic, diabolical, draconian, draconic, fell, ferocious, fiendish, fierce, ghoulish, grinding, harsh, ill, infernal, inhuman, inhumane, iron, mean, merciless, monstrous, outrageous, sanguinary, shrewd, slas |