Black Friday en · PROPN
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
Etymology
From black (“bad; ill-omened; marked by disaster”) + Friday. Friday has long been considered an unlucky day in ancient superstition. When a Friday coincided with another bad omen, such as falling on the 13th, or was marked by a disaster, it came to be called a Black Friday. In Philadelphia, police later used the term to describe the day after Thanksgiving, when heavy shopping crowds caused severe traffic congestion and chaos. Over time, public relations campaigns promoted a more positive, but inaccurate, explanation for the name. This widely circulated false etymology claimed that Black Friday” referred to the point in the year when retailers shifted from operating at a loss (“in the red”) to making a profit (“in the black”). Despite its popularity, this explanation is an urban legend and was even mistakenly included in sources like Wiktionary for several years.
Meanings
- Any Friday that is literally or figuratively darkened by catastrophe, or the anniversary thereof.
- (Internet, historical) The conclusion of United States v. Scheinberg on April 15, 2011, after which major online poker sites stopped offering real money play to their United States customers.
- (Canada, UK, US) The day after Thanksgiving Day, generally regarded as the first day of the Christmas season, and the busiest shopping day of the year.
- (US, broadly) The sales period involving heavy price reductions immediately following Thanksgiving Day, from Friday (the original Black Friday) through Monday (Cyber Monday).
- Synonym of Friday the thirteenth (“a Friday falling on the 13th day of the month (and therefore doubly ill-omened)”).
- (obsolete, possibly) Good Friday, the Friday before Easter.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black Fridays | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Coordinates
Black Monday · Cyber Monday · Black Thursday · Black Tuesday
Relateds
Synonyms
Translations (40)
fr vendredi fou (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · ar الجُمُعَة الْبَيْضَاء (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · hi ब्लैक फ़्राइडे (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · fr Black Friday (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · ca divendres negre (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · de Schlussverkauf (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · ro Black Friday (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · eo nigra vendredo (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · ja ブラックフライデー (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · pt Black Friday (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · nv Ndaʼiinííshjį́ Diigisii (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · kk Қара жұма (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · es liquidaciones (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · fr vendredi noir (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · pl czarny piątek (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · nv Ndaʼiiníísh Łizhingo bee Wójíhígíí (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · pl czarny piątek (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · fr vendredi fou (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · ja ブラックフライデー (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · de Black Friday (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · cmn 黑色星期五 (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · es viernes negro (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · cmn 黑五 (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · hi काला शुक्रवार (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · ar الْجُمُعَة السَّوْدَاء (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · yue 黑色星期五 (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · ro Vinerea Neagră (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · pt Sexta-Feira Negra (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · ko 블랙 프라이데이 (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · gl venres negro (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · ko 블랙 프라이데이 (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · cmn 黑色星期五 (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · ka შავი პარასკევი (sales period involving heavy price reductions) · yue 黑色星期五 (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · cmn 黑五 (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · hu fekete péntek (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · ka შავი პარასკევი (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · es Black Friday (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · pt Black Friday (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day) · uk Чорна п'ятниця (day after U.S. Thanksgiving Day)