blankn.
/blaŋk/, U.S. /blæŋk/ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > money > medium of exchange or currency > coins collective > foreign coins > [noun] > French coins > other French coins
denierc1425
Poitevina1475
blank1480
sousec1503
gigot1530
soulx1543
liarda1549
pistolor1550
obole1567
patard1583
double1586
whitea1634
sols1637
penny1656
centime1796
cent1810
sou1814
1480 W. Caxton Chron. Eng. ccxliv. 298 The frensshmen playde owre kyng and his lordes at the dise and an archer alwey for a blank of hir money. For they wenden al had ben heres.
c1503 tr. Charter of London in R. Arnold Chron. f. iiijv/2 Yeldyng therof by yere CCC. li. of sterlynge of blankis.
1523 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles I. ccccxli. 776 Whosoeuer brought a fagot before the kynges tent, he shulde haue a blanke of Fraunce.
1577 E. Hellowes tr. A. de Guevara Chron. 204 He did rather leaue his woode vnsolde, then abate one blanke of his price.
1629 tr. S. Pelegromius Descr. S'hertogenbosh 45 Candles 12 stiuers a pound, an Egge two blancks.
1670 T. Blount Νομο-λεξικον: Law-dict. Blancks, a kinde of Money, coyned by King Henry the Fifth, in the parts of France, which were then subject to England, the value whereof was 8d... The reason why they were called Blanks, was because..this of Silver, was in name distinguished by the colour.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. Blank also denotes a small copper coin, formerly current in France, at the rate of five deniers Tournois.
1863 Spring & Sum. in Lapland 81 A specie dollar, or ‘blank,’ as they call it here, will rouse the apathy and greed of a Lap when paper currency will have no effect.
2.
a. The white spot in the centre of a target; hence figurative anything aimed at, the range of such aim.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > will > intention > [noun] > intention or purpose > end, purpose, or object > goal or target
markc1275
lodestarc1374
aimc1400
mete1402
pricka1450
butta1522
level1525
white marka1533
goal1540
Jack-a-Lent1553
blankc1557
scope1562
period1590
upshot1591
bird1592
golden goal1597
nick1602
quarry1615
North Star1639
huba1657
fair game1690
endgame1938
target1942
cockshot1995
c1557 Enterlude of Youth (new ed.) sig. Ciii Pinke and drinke and also at the blanke And many sportes mo.
1598 R. Barret Theorike & Pract. Mod. Warres iii. 35 To cause them to leuell, and discharge at the blancke thereof.
1837 N. Wiseman Funeral Orat. Cdl. Weld 23 Rome, the very blank and aim of religious partizanship in our country.
b. ‘Level line mark for cannon, as point-blank, equal to 800 yards.’ Smyth Sailor's Word-bk.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > discharge of firearms > [noun] > range of gun or shot
reach1572
right range1637
blank1747
carry1851
1747 Gentleman's Mag. Aug. 398/1 Fired at the Bellona, which capt. Barrington..did not return (being but just within blank).
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > difficulty > hindrance > hindering completely or preventing > [noun] > a check or rebuff > complete check or impasse
checkmatec1440
blank1542
nonplus1582
noncome1600
choke1674
dead lock1781
impasse1851
no go1870
standoff1876
gridlock1981
1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes f. 61 Aristippus was nothyng greued to take a blanke in disputacion.
1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Acts vi. f. 10 The inwarde griefe..whiche thei had conceiued for the blancke they wer put unto.
1580 J. Lyly Euphues & his Eng. (new ed.) f. 72 Suche a place, as turned them all to a blanke.
4. A lottery ticket which does not gain a prize. to draw a blank: see draw v. Phrases 8a.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > lottery or raffle > [noun] > ticket
blank1567
lottery ticket1676
benefit-ticket1694
horse1726
premium bond1820
coupon1909
scratch-off1985
1567 in Kempe Loseley MSS. (1835) 188 A verie rich Lotterie..without any blancks.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Coriolanus (1623) v. ii. 12 It is Lots to Blankes, My name hath touch't your eares. View more context for this quotation
1779 J. Moore View Society & Manners France II. xcv. 426 All the tickets he had in the lottery had proved blanks.
1824 W. Irving Tales of Traveller I. 4 When one has drawn a blank.
5.
a. A blank space in a written or printed document.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > writing > written text > layout > [noun] > blank space in document
window1533
space1565
blankc1570
lacuna1663
lacune1701
c1570 Leg. Bp. St. Andrews in J. G. Dalyell Scotish Poems 16th Cent. (1801) II. 343 I sall leive blankis for to imbrew thame.
1632 in S. R. Gardiner Rep. Cases Star Chamber & High Comm. (1886) 119 Warrantes..with blankes for names of plaintiff and defendant.
c1677 A. Marvell Acct. Growth Popery in Wks. I. 555 Which blanck..shall be filled up with the Christian name of such King or Queen.
1736 J. Swift Let. to Pope 2 Dec. in Corresp. (1913) V. 397 I cannot write a paper full as I used to do; and yet I will not forgive a blank of half an inch from you.
a1859 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. (1861) V. 138 Full powers must be sent..with blanks left for the names of the plenipotentiaries.
b. Provisional words printed in italics (instead of blank spaces) in a bill before Parliament, being matters of practical detail, of which the final form will be settled in Committee.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > [noun] > bill > provisional words in
blank1817
1817 Parl. Deb. 1st Ser. 583/2 The blanks of the bill were then filled up in the committee.
1863 H. Cox Inst. Eng. Govt. i. ix. 167 In going through the bill [in committee], words printed in italics, commonly called ‘blanks,’ stand, unless objected to.
c. in blank [after French en blanc] : with blank spaces for the filling in of details.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > writing > writing materials > material to write on > paper > [phrase] > with blank spaces for filling in details
in blank1814
1814 A. Rees Cycl. (1819) XXVIII. at Policy Inconvenience having been experienced from having marine insurances in blank.
1842 H. J. Stephen New Comm. Laws Eng. II. ii. v. 164 A bill, payable to order, is indorsed in blank by the payee.
1858 J. W. Smith Law of Bills 27 Another way in which the holder of a bill or note indorsed to him in blank may transfer it without incurring personal liability, is by writing over the indorser's signature the words, ‘Pay A. B. or order’.
1882 R. Bithell Counting-house Dict. 45 Bills and Notes of this description are said to be drawn ‘in Blank’.
6.
a. A document, ‘paper,’ or ‘form’ with spaces left blank to be filled up at the pleasure of the person to whom it is given (e.g. a blank charter), or as the event may determine; a blank form. Now chiefly U.S., frequently with defining term.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > writing > writing materials > material to write on > paper > [noun] > blank form for filling in
blank1586
write-off1751
card1817
registration card1842
application1849
entry form1856
form1856
application blank1866
pro forma1928
fiche1949
1586 T. Bowes tr. P. de la Primaudaye French Acad. I. 761 The citie of Athens..was constrained to sende a blanke for capitulations of peace.
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II ii. i. 251 And daily new exactions are deuisde, As blanckes, beneuolences, and I wot not what. View more context for this quotation
1619 F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Maides Trag. v. sig. K3v Throw him the blanke. Melantius, write in that thy choice.
1711 in London Gaz. No. 4817/7 The several Blanks..are printed..at the Crown and Scepter.
1780 J. Reed in J. Sparks Corr. Amer. Revol. (1853) III. 23 We have furnished the Commissioners with blanks of various kinds of returns, and directed them to send us a weekly account.
a1820 D. McClure Diary (1899) 83 Dr. Wheelock..had given us blanks, for bills of Exchange, on the School's funds, in Scotland.
1845 J. J. Hooper Taking Census i. 151 Drawing our blanks from their case, we proceeded [etc.].
1860 J. G. Holland Miss Gilbert's Career x. 181 You've had to write the whole of this. How long have we been out of blanks?
1904 P. H. Hanus Mod. School 128 By means of question blanks sent to the parents, much information..is secured by the teachers.
1904 N.Y. Times 24 Nov. 1 The messages were always on regular telegraph blanks.
1905 Atlantic Monthly Nov. 716 I wrote a story. It was returned with a printed blank that decapitated my hopes.
1963 P.M.L.A. 78 iv. ii. 15/1 These committees required applicants to send in a completed application blank together with academic transcripts.
b. An empty form without substance; anything insignificant; nothing at all.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > importance > unimportance > [noun] > that which is unimportant > insubstantial
triflec1290
vainc1330
winda1382
vapour1382
gossamer?a1400
visevase1481
good morrow1542
cobweb1579
superficial1579
puff1583
bladder1589
blathery1591
froth1594
bag of winda1599
moth1600
nominala1625
tumour1630
windlestraw1637
vacuity1648
balloon1656
blank1678
breath bubble1835
nominality1842
fluff1906
cotton candy1931
the world > existence and causation > existence > substantiality or concreteness > unsubstantiality or abstractness > [noun] > unsubstantiality or lack of substance > something lacking substance
breathc1275
winda1382
vapour1382
cloudc1384
gossamer?a1400
webc1400
comedown1583
bubble1598
anatomy1605
carcass1612
intentional1658
blank1678
ethereality1819
breath bubble1835
1678 J. Dryden All for Love i She has left him The blank of what he was.
1704 W. Penn in Mem. Hist. Soc. Pennsylvania (1870) IX. 308 People might have thought..I was gone with him a blank, he being called governor.
1742 E. Young Complaint: Night the Second 9 No Blank, no Trifle Nature made, or meant.
1818 W. Scott Heart of Mid-Lothian i, in Tales of my Landlord 2nd Ser. I. 46 His debts amount to blank—his losses to blank—his funds to blank—leaving a balance of blank in his favour.
c. An unprinted leaf of a book.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > leaves or pages of book > [noun] > leaf > types of leaf
title sheet1615
interleaf1741
end-paper1818
flyleaf1832
inlay1877
witness1880
end-leaf1905
blank1952
1952 J. Carter ABC for Book-collectors 36 Blanks sometimes occur at the beginning of the book, sometimes at the end of a clearly marked division, more often at the end of the last gathering.
7. figurative. A vacant space, place, or period; a void.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > fact of being unoccupied > [noun] > an unoccupied space
vacuity?1541
vacuum1589
blanka1616
gapa1616
vacancy1652
space1654
evacuity1655
void1697
chasm1759
lacuna1872
null1887
a1616 W. Shakespeare Twelfth Night (1623) ii. iv. 110 Du. And what's her history? Vio. A blanke my Lord. View more context for this quotation
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iii. 48 For the Book of knowledg fair Presented with a Universal blanc Of Natures works to mee expung'd and ras'd. View more context for this quotation
1759 R. Jackson Hist. Rev. Pennsylvania 375 The Remainder of that Day..was wasted..The next was a Blank likewise.
1793 Ld. Spencer in Ld. Auckland's Corr. (1862) III. 124 The interval till then will be a complete blank in my life.
c1815 J. Hislop Scott. Sacr. Sabb. vii The blanks in family circles fill'd again.
1876 J. B. Mozley Serm. preached Univ. of Oxf. vi. 142 The future is a blank, or a dark enigma to them.
8. Blank verse; cf. blank adj. 8.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > poetry > versification > [noun] > blank verse
heroic1573
blank1589
blank verse1589
stage-blanks1636
1589 T. Nashe To Students in R. Greene Menaphon Epist. sig. A3 Least..they bewaile in weeping blankes, the wane of their Monarchie.
1628 O. Felltham Resolves: 2nd Cent. lxx. sig. V5v I hold it better put in Prose, or Blanks.
1799 R. Southey Nondescripts i, in Poet. Wks. (1838) III. 58 In Miltonic blank bemouth'd.
1809 Ld. Byron Eng. Bards & Sc. Reviewers 3 Rhyme and Blank maintain an equal race.
9. Mechanics.
a. A piece of metal, cut and shaped to the required size of the thing to be made, and ready for the finishing operations; esp. in Coining, the disc of metal before stamping.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > metal > metal in specific state or form > [noun] > piece of metal in other form
blank?1590
knee1825
larget1852
strand1876
core1892
undercloak1896
use1955
?1590–1 J. Burel Discription Queens Entry Edinb. in Poems sig. M Braid blancis, hang aboue thair eis, With iewels of all Histories.
c1695 in Ruding Ann. Coinage (ed. 2) III. 423 The Blanks for Farthings cast.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. Blank, in coinage, a plate, or piece of gold, or silver, cut and shaped for a coin, but not yet stamped.
1831 J. Holland Treat. Manuf. Metal I. 201 The blanks for wood screws are generally forged by the nailors.
1881 W. W. Greener Gun & its Devel. 296 The blank [for a cartridge case] is..forced by a descending plug through a tapering aperture.
b. (See quot. 1962.)
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > glass and glass-like materials > [noun] > glass > glass-work or glassware > other glass articles
preserving glass1628
bubble1660
blank1899
1899 Daily News 14 June 9/1 In the blowing of the opal glass surface of the ‘blank’ a blister or bubble may be caused.
1962 Gloss. Terms Glass Ind. (B.S.I.) 23 Blank, any article of glass on which subsequent processing is required.
c. Electric recording. (See quot. 1940.)
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > record > recording or reproducing sound or visual material > sound recording and reproduction > sound recording or reproducing equipment > [noun] > material for record
blank1940
plastic1969
vinyl1976
1940 Chambers's Techn. Dict. 94/2 Blank, the shaved wax ready for placing on a recording machine for making wax records with a stylus.
10. The 1/ 230400 of a grain.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > measurement > measurement by weighing > [noun] > unit or denomination of weight > smallest unit or grain > specific parts of grain
mitea1393
periot1564
fourth1594
minta1600
droit1601
prime1604
second1604
blank1680
1680 R. Morden Geogr. Rectified (1685) 279 The Monyers Divide the Perit into 24 Blanks.
1725 R. Bradley Chomel's Dictionaire Œconomique at Weights The Moneyers subdivide the grain thus: 24 Blanks make 1 Perrot; 20 Perrots 1 Dwit; 24 Dwits 1 Mite; 20 Mites 1 grain.
Categories »
11. In the game of dominoes: A piece which is without points on one or both of its divisions.
12.
a. A dash written in place of an omitted letter or word. Thus, —— —— Esq. of —— Hall, read Blank Blank Esquire of Blank Hall. Cf. dash n.1
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > writing > written character > punctuation > [noun] > omission marks
apostrophe1598
caret1710
eclipsis1727
break1733
dash1733
blank1773
ellipsis1795
tilde1959
1773 O. Goldsmith She stoops to Conquer v. 106 Anthony Lumpkin, Esquire, of blank place.
1817 W. Scott Rob Roy I. xi. 270 A dispensation..to Diana Vernon to marry Blank Osbaldistone, Esq.
1837 C. Dickens Pickwick Papers xxiv. 251 Here's my authority. Blank Tupman, blank Pickwick—against the peace of our sufferin Lord the King.
1861 Two Cosmos II. iv. ix. 83 She was married, though—blank—years younger than Miss Lambert.
1888 Co-operative News 24 Mar. 266 Our adjoining neighbours at blank—the place shall be nameless.
1968 Listener 4 Apr. 445/2 It was not practicable to print anecdotes week after week about Lord Blank's personality and foolish views.
b. Used euphemistically as a verbal representation of a dash put instead of an oath or profane word. Cf. blank v. 5c. So (as adjectives or adverbs) blankety /ˈblæŋkɪtɪ/ which represents an adjective derivative, such as bloody (often in the extended form blankety-blank); less frequently blanked /blæŋkt/, blanky /ˈblæŋkɪ/
/ˈblæŋkɪtɪ/ which represents an adjective derivative, such as bloody (often in the extended form blankety-blank); less frequently blanked /blæŋkt/, blanky /ˈblæŋkɪ/ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > state of being accursed > curse > [noun] > as everyday imprecation
oatha1225
malisonc1300
reproach1485
thunderbolt1559
revilement1577
thunder-crack1577
revile1579
ban1590
wish1597
thunder-clap1610
expletive1647
rapper1675
cuss1771
winze1786
Goddammit1800
goddam1828
dirty word1842
blank1854
emphatic1868
swear1871
sailor's blessing1876
blessing1878
goldarn1879
swear-word1883
rounder1885
curse-word1897
dang1906
sailor's farewell1937
the mind > language > malediction > oaths > [noun] > euphemisms for stronger oaths
minced oath?1654
blank1854
adjective1888
bee1926
muck1952
F-word1956
C-word1979
N-word1985
XXXX1985
F-bomb1987
1854 ‘C. Bede’ Further Adventures Mr. Verdant Green (ed. 2) iv. 28 I wouldn't give a blank for such a blank blank. I'm blank, if he don't look as though he'd swaller'd a blank codfish.
1874 M. Clarke His Nat. Life II. iii. xiii. 236 ‘My blank!’ cried Burgess. ‘You blank blank, is that your blank game? I'll blank soon cure you of that!’
1876 B. Harte Gabriel Conroy vi. vi Blank me, if she was inclined to show some attention to Colonel Starbottle.
1876 B. Harte Gabriel Conroy vi. vii But what in blank are you waiting for?
1886 H. Baumann Londinismen 11/1 Blanked.
1888 Troy Daily Times 3 Feb. (Farmer) He had known vessels to be hindered thirty days; yes, even three months, by that blankety blankety bar!
1888 Owosso (Mich.) Press Apr. ‘I'm..just as good as dead,’ said he, ‘or you wouldn't kick that dog in that way with safety. Not by a blankety blankety blank blank sight.’
1889 Liverpool Echo 5 Aug. 3/2 The veteran lawyer who compared untruthful witnesses as liars, blanked liars, and experts.
1892 Photogr. Ann. II. 42 The blankety blankness that ensues when the tyro..finds that he has forgotten..his tripod top, &c.!
1896 Daily News 15 Feb. 5/1 He.. is called ‘a blanky capitalist’.
1900 Westm. Gaz. 25 May 2/2 Then he lay back, swearing at the blankety blank young blanker.
1900 H. Lawson On Track 31 And do you think I'd tell you a blanky lie?
1900 H. Lawson On Track 40 ‘What does he want to do that for?’ ‘To get it blanky well analysed! You ass!’
1902 H. Lawson Children of Bush 12 Let 'em go to ——! I'm blanked if I give a sprat.
a1904 S. E. White Blazed Trail Stories (1919) iii. 45 What's good enough fer th' boss is good enough fer any blank blanked scaler.
1908 M. Diver Great Amulet xviii Colonel Stanham Buckley..inquired picturesquely of a passing official when the blank this blankety blank train was supposed to start.
1914 W. J. Locke Fortunate Youth i What cared he for the blankety little blanks who gibed at him?
1952 A. Grimble Pattern of Islands 8 Never springing a blanky leak anywhere.
1959 in N. Mailer Advts. for Myself (1961) 345 Mailer? He's an incorrigible blank.
13. A zero score in a game. U.S.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > winning, losing, or scoring > [noun] > gaining points > score > unit in > specific
goose-eggc1394
love1742
seven1807
blank1867
maximum1986
1867 Ball Players' Chron. 6 June 2/2 Sharp fielding should have disposed of the Harvards for a blank.
1888 Outing May 119/2 The tenth innings had seen both sides retire for blanks.
14. Short for blank-cartridge n. at blank adj. and adv. Compounds 2b.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > missile > ammunition for firearms > [noun] > cartridge > type of cartridge
ball cartridge1768
blank-cartridge1826
wire cartridge1829
Schultze cartridge1885
centre-fire1889
blank1896
1896 R. Kipling Seven Seas 202 For it's ‘Three rounds blank’ an' follow me.
1935 N. Marsh Enter Murderer iv. 52 The report comes from the wings. A blank was never used on the stage, as it would have scorched Surbonadier's clothes.
Draft additions December 2015
figurative. to shoot (also fire) blanks (chiefly in to be shooting (also firing) blanks).
a. Chiefly Sport. To be ineffective; to make an effort which achieves nothing; spec. (Sport) to fail to score (cf. sense 13).In quot. 1939 as a use of sense 14 in figurative context.
ΚΠ
1939 N.Y. Times 14 July 20/5 With his whole game out of hand and his cannonball service firing blanks, Shields was at the mercy of the faultlessly functioning strokes of the lithe, perfectly trained young athlete on the other side of the net.
1952 G. S. Viereck Men into Beasts xii. 82 I was urged by the superintendent to ‘elect to serve’. Otherwise the time I was spending in jail waiting for a decision would count for nothing. In prison language, I would be shooting blanks.
1972 Washington Post 22 Oct. c2/1 The high-powered Raiders have been shooting blanks for years.
1985 Times 2 Dec. 20/2 Predictably, the draw was goalless. Birmingham have been firing blanks for 626 minutes.
2014 D. Kass On Market 492 U.S. monetary policy is now effectively shooting blanks, and fiscal policy will now turn out to be a drag on growth.
b. slang (originally U.S.). Of a man: to ejaculate infertile semen; to be infertile.
ΚΠ
1958 E. Frankel Band of Brothers xxxiii. 307 I got ten bucks says Firesteen shot blanks.
1960 H. Wentworth & S. B. Flexner Dict. Amer. Slang 183/2 Fire blanks, to have sexual intercourse without impregnating the woman when the couple wishes children.
1994 G. Nicholson Everything & More xxxvi. 231 I can fuck but I can't reproduce. I'm just firing blanks.
2015 Daily Star (Nexis) 30 May One day I hope to have kids. I hope I'm not shooting blanks.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1887; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
blankadj.adv.
/blaŋk/, U.S. /blæŋk/ A. adj.
1. White (obsolete, and chiefly in specific uses, e.g. blank plumb white lead, blank falcon a ‘white hawk,’ i.e. one in its third year); pale, colourless.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > white or whiteness > [adjective]
whiteOE
blankc1325
blanch1330
candid1635
the world > matter > colour > named colours > white or whiteness > whitener > [noun] > white pigment or paint
white leadlOE
whitea1300
blank plumbc1325
cerusec1405
white earth1448
Spanish white1546
litharge1551
mineral white1651
flake-white1660
Vienna white1816
permanent white1822
zinc white1847
constant white1854
Krems1854
Cremnitz1874
silver-white1875
lithoponea1884
baryta white1885
Charlton white1885
titanium white1920
the world > animals > birds > order Falconiformes (falcons, etc.) > family Accipitridae (hawks, etc.) > [noun] > hawk > young > in third year
blank falcon1575
the world > matter > colour > state or mode of having colour > absence of colour > [adjective]
huelessc1000
whiteOE
plainc1330
uncoloured1538
undyed1538
colourless1610
blank1667
unteinted1745
achromatic1759
achromic1762
etiolated1784
tintless1789
unshaded1823
achromatous1845
untinted1849
unpigmented1853
achromatistous1878
achromous1878
achroous1878
decolorized1879
etiolized1880
untoned1897
c1325 Coer de L. 6526 A robe i-furryd with blaun [? blaunc] and nere.
a1350 Recipe Painting in Archæol. Jrnl. (1844) 1 65 Vorte maken blankplum.
c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 38 Blanke plumbe [K.H. blavmblumbe, 1499 blawnblumb, otherwyse called whyte lede.]
a1500 in T. Wright & J. O. Halliwell Reliquiæ Antiquæ (1845) I. 108 Tempur blank chalke, plum or ceruse, with gleyre.
1562 G. Legh Accedens of Armory (1597) 133 b The Herehaught..in a chemise blanke, powdred and spotted with mullets Sable.
1575 G. Turberville Bk. Faulconrie 212 The blancke Falcons are flegmaticke.
1614 S. Latham Falconry i. vii. 25 In your blanke Hawks.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost x. 656 To the blanc Moone Her office they prescrib'd. View more context for this quotation
1726 J. Thomson Winter (ed. 2) 36 Rising, slow, Blank, in the Leaden-colour'd East, the Moon.
1821 Ld. Byron Don Juan: Canto IV ix. 75 The blank grey was not made to blast their hair.
2.
a. Of paper, etc.: Left white or ‘fair’; not written upon, free from written or printed characters, ‘empty of all marks’ (Johnson); said also of orders, cheques, deeds, and official documents left with an empty space for special signature or instruction; not ‘filled up’. See Compounds 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > writing > writing materials > material to write on > paper > [adjective] > blank paper, not written upon
white1466
void1551
blanka1555
empty1579
fair1606
uninked1637
clean1704
a1555 D. Lindsay Tragedie in Dialog Experience & Courteour (1559) sig. Siij Ane paper blank, his Grace I gart subscryue.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) ii. i. 72 I warrant he hath a thousand of these Letters, writ with blancke-space for different names. View more context for this quotation
1687 London Gaz. No. 2209/4 A Copy-Book of Letters..about one half of it being Blank paper.
1708 London Gaz. No. 4499/3 His Grace sent him a blank Passport.
1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 549. ¶1 When I look upon the Creditor-side, I find little more than blank Paper.
1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. IV. 178 Requesting the King to send a blank safe conduct in the largest terms.
b. Const. of.
ΚΠ
1842 Ld. Tennyson St. Simeon Stylites in Poems (new ed.) II. 60 That God hath now Sponged and made blank of crimeful record.
c. in blank: without names specified.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > naming > anonymity or lack of a name > [adverb] > without names specified
in blank1836
1836 J. Kent Comm. Amer. Law (1873) III. xliv. 89 A note endorsed in blank is like one payable to bearer.
1845 H. J. Stephen New Comm. Laws Eng. II. 129 Policies being made in blank, that is, without specifying the names of the persons, for whose benefit they were made.
1861 G. J. Goschen Theory Foreign Exchanges 37 Bills which are technically said to be drawn in blank.
3.
a. gen. Empty, without contents, void, bare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > fact of being unoccupied > [adjective] > empty
idlec825
toomOE
lankc1000
emptyOE
leera1250
i-lerc1275
vain1382
void1390
bare1399
vacanta1400
i-voidec1415
hollow1600
vake1600
clear1607
inane1662
blank1748
viduous1855
unchargeda1861
1748 J. Thomson Castle of Indolence i. xxix Wide o'er this ample court's blank area.
1840 T. Hood Up Rhine 221 The Figure..strode forth into the blank darkness.
1849 J. Ruskin Seven Lamps Archit. Notes 203 The blank lancet arch on the one hand, and the overcharged cinquefoiled arch on the other.
1855 A. Bain Senses & Intellect i. ii. 178 The blank sensation of the naked body is owing principally to the deprivation of touch.
1856 P. E. Dove Logic Christian Faith v. i. §1. 261 Issuing out of a universe in which there was only blank space.
b. blank practice n. practice with ‘blank’ or empty cartridges (see Compounds 2). Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > drill or training > [noun] > weapon-training > firing practice
artillery practice1781
ball practice1803
fire discipline1870
blank practice1873
shoot1941
1873 J. Morley Rousseau I. 66 Rousseau..changed the blank practice of the elder philosophers into a deadly affair of ball and shell.
4. figurative.
a. Void of interest or event; vacant, ‘having nothing in it;’ as a blank look-out.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > feeling of weariness or tedium > [adjective] > wearisome or tedious
dreicha1300
alangec1330
joylessa1400
tedious1412
wearifulc1454
weary1465
laboriousa1475
tiresome?a1513
irksome1513
wearisome1530
woodena1566
irkful1570
flat1573
leaden1593
barren1600
soaked1600
unlively1608
dulla1616
irking1629
drearisome1633
drear1645
plumbous1651
fatigable1656
dreary1667
uncurious1685
unenlivened1692
blank1726
disinteresting1737
stupid1748
stagnant1749
trist?1756
vegetable1757
borish1766
uninteresting1769
unenlivening1774
oorie1787
wearying1796
subjectless1803
yawny1805
wearing1811
stuffy1813
sloomy1820
tediousome1823
arid1827
lacklustrous1834
boring1839
featureless1839
slow1840
sodden1853
ennuying1858
dusty1860
cabbagy1861
old1864
mouldy1876
yawnful1878
drab1880
dehydrated1884
interestless1886
jay1889
boresome1895
stodgy1895
stuffy1895
yawnsome1900
sludgy1901
draggy1922
blah1937
nowhere1940
drack1945
stupefactive1970
schleppy1978
wack1986
1726 Bp. J. Butler 15 Serm. xiv. 281 Various Kinds of Amusements..serve to fill up the Blank Spaces of Time.
1803 J. Bristed Ανθρωπλανομενος II. 481 They..suffered us to talk Irish to ourselves all the evening, without the least interruption, so that we had but a blank night of it.
1870 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest (ed. 2) I. App. 731 A year which the Chronicles leave quite blank.
b. Void of result, unsuccessful, fruitless, nugatory; amounting to or producing nothing.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > disadvantage > uselessness > uselessness, vanity, or futility > [adjective] > useless or unproductive
fruitless1340
unfructuousc1380
unfruitous1382
unfruitfula1400
barren1549
blanka1556
effectless1594
issueless1611
infructuous1615
sterile1642
thorny ground1657
unproductivea1676
infructuose1727
resultless1832
irresultive1850
unresultive1850
unprocreant1851
a1556 N. Udall Ralph Roister Doister (?1566) ii. ii. sig. C.iiij I weene I am a prophete, this geare will proue blanke.
a1633 Visct. Falkland Hist. Edward II (1680) 47 The King doubles his pace homewards; instead of Triumph, glad he had got loose from so imminent a danger. This blank return fill'd the Kingdom with a fretting murmur.
1643 Lanc. Tracts 165 The two Colonells being blank in their treaty, spent their stay in wise instructions.
1699 A. Boyer Royal Dict. (at cited word) A blank (or bad) Come-off, Une méchante defaite.
1834 R. E. Egerton-Warburton Hunting Songs 7 The man..Whose heart heaves a sigh when his gorse is drawn blank.
1873 R. E. Egerton-Warburton Hunting Songs (new ed.) 168 But I felt inclin'd in my inmost mind, To wish for a blank day.
c. Of the face or look: Void of expression, expressing no attention, interest, or emotion; vacant. Also const. of.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > head > face > face with expression or expression > [adjective] > without expression or expressionless
mask-like1584
wooden-faced1605
void1796
muffin-faced1823
blank1859
blank-faced1881
poker-faced1915
stone-faced1932
po-faced1934
1859 Ld. Tennyson Elaine in Idylls of King 189 While he roll'd his eyes Yet blank from sleep.
1884 W. C. Smith Kildrostan i. iii. 85 To look with blank fixed gaze at these old books.
1885 J. H. Ewing Story Short Life i. 12 Lady Jane's face was blank because she was trying not to laugh.
1924 A. E. W. Mason House of Arrow viii. 97 Hanaud's eyes..were blank of all expression.
5. Of persons: (Looking) as if deprived of the faculty of speech or action; ‘shut up,’ utterly disconcerted, discomfited, resourceless, or non-plussed; now chiefly in to look blank: cf. A. 4c.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > difficulty > hindrance > hindering completely or preventing > [adjective] > prevented or checked > completely stuck or at an impasse
stalec1470
blank1542
enterprised1560
nonplus1589
bogged1605
nonplussed1606
blanked1611
stymied1862
deadlocked1880
stalemated1903
banjaxed1939
snookered1961
gridlock1983
1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes f. 61 Beeyng confounded and made blanke in a disputacion of a certain feloe.
1574 J. Baret Aluearie B 719 These fellowes be blanke, or out of harte and courage.
1649 J. Milton Εικονοκλαστης xxi. 184 The Damsell of Burgundie, at sight of her own letter, was soon blank.
a1656 Bp. J. Hall Invisible World (1659) iii. iii. 149 How blank must [Moses] needs have looked, to see his great works patterned by those presumptuous rivals?
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost ix. 890 Adam..amaz'd, Astonied stood and Blank . View more context for this quotation
1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 7. ¶1 Upon this I looked very blank.
1744 J. Thomson Summer in Seasons (new ed.) 98 The blank Assistants seem'd, Silent, to ask, whom Fate would next demand.
1853 C. Kingsley Hypatia I. xi. 241 The two old men looked at each other with blank and horror-stricken faces.
6. Of emotions: Prostrating the whole faculties; unrelieved, helpless, stark, sheer.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > greatness of quantity, amount, or degree > high or intense degree > [adjective] > utter or absolute
shirea1225
purec1300
properc1380
plainc1395
cleana1400
fine?a1400
entirec1400
veryc1400
starka1425
utterc1430
utterlyc1440
merec1443
absolute1531
outright1532
cleara1535
bloodyc1540
unproachable1544
flat1553
downright1577
sheer1583
right-down?1586
single1590
peremptory1601
perfecta1616
downa1625
implicit1625
every way1628
blank1637
out-and-outa1642
errant1644
inaccessional1651
thorough-paced1651
even down1654
dead1660
double-dyed1667
through stitch1681
through-stitched1682
total1702
thoroughgoing1719
thorough-sped1730
regular1740
plumb1748
hollow1751
unextenuated1765
unmitigated1783
stick, stock, stone dead1796
positive1802
rank1809
heart-whole1823
skire1825
solid1830
fair1835
teetotal1840
bodacious1845
raw1856
literal1857
resounding1873
roaring1884
all out1893
fucking1893
pink1896
twenty-four carat1900
grand slam1915
stone1928
diabolical1933
fricking1937
righteous1940
fecking1952
raving1954
1637 J. Milton Comus 16 Noble grace that dash't brute violence With sudden adoration, and blancke aw.
1717 A. Pope Eloisa to Abelard in Wks. 424 'Tis all blank sadness, or continual tears.
1836 C. Dickens Pickwick Papers (1837) v. 48 Gazing on each other with countenances of blank dismay.
1848 W. Irving Hist. N.Y. (rev. ed.) vii. xi. 435 Blank terror reigned over the community.
1875 P. G. Hamerton Intellect. Life (ed. 2) i. vii. 39 I well remember the blank despair which I felt.
7. † b. Mere, bare, simple. Obsolete.
a. gen. Pure, unmixed, utter, downright, sheer, absolute (with a negative or privative force).
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > greatness of quantity, amount, or degree > high or intense degree > [adjective] > utter or absolute > of something bad or reprobated
properc1430
arrant1639
erranta1720
defecated1796
unredeemed1799
blank1854
first class1868
prize1903
mucking1917
1854 T. De Quincey On Murder (rev. ed.) in Select. Grave & Gay IV. 61 The blank impossibilities of Lilliput.
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. xviii. 222 The red sandstones contrast most favorably with the blank whiteness.
1871 F. W. Farrar Witness of Hist. ii. 54 The blank atheism..of recent controversialists.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > wholeness > state or quality of being simple, unmixed, or uncompounded > [adjective] > without addition or qualification > bare or mere
mereeOE
nakedOE
barec1200
purec1325
singlec1421
very1548
nude1551
absolute?1570
blank1596
female1602
clear1606
1596 T. Nashe Haue with you to Saffron-Walden sig. L3 None is priuy to a blank maintenance he hath, & some maintenance of necessity he must haue.
1640 R. Brome Antipodes sig. K4v Did you not warrant me upon that pawne..your blanck honour, That you would cure his jealousie.
c. Cards. Unsupported by other cards of the same suit (see quots.).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > card game > card or cards > [adjective] > of specific value in game
small1672
guarded1742
high1742
blank1895
wild1927
1895 G. J. Manson Sporting Dict. Blank, a card in hand is said to be blank when there is no other card of the same suit in hand with it. The term is also applied to a king and queen of the same suit, in which case the twenty of that suit is blank.
1934 Amer. Speech 9 11/1 A blank King is a King without a guard and to blank a King is to discard its guard.
1958 Listener 16 Oct. 611/3 The blank honour combination in diamonds takes the bloom off West's hand.
8.
a. blank verse n. verse without rhyme; esp. the iambic pentameter or unrhymed heroic, the regular measure of English dramatic and epic poetry, first used by the Earl of Surrey (died 1547).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > poetry > versification > [noun] > blank verse
heroic1573
blank1589
blank verse1589
stage-blanks1636
1589 Nashe in Greene Menaph. (Arb.) Pref. 6 The swelling bumbast of bragging blanke verse.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Hamlet (1623) ii. ii. 327 The Lady shall say her minde freely; or the blanke [1604 black] Verse shall halt for't.
1739 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 16 Apr. (1932) (modernized text) II. 363 Those that have no rhymes are called blank verses.
1784 W. Cowper Let. 11 Dec. (1981) II. 308 Blank verse is susceptible of a much greater diversification of manner, than verse in rhime.
1874 A. H. Sayce Princ. Compar. Philol. ix. 385 Our greatest poems have been written in blank verse.
b. Hence blank versifier.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > poetry > poet > poet by kind of poem > [noun] > poet in specific metre
iambographer1625
blank versifier1746
dactylist1785
hexametrist1797
pentametrist1803
iambist1839
choliambist1847
1746 Fool (1748) II. 96 Rebus-Men, Punsters, and Blank Versifiers.
Absolutely, unreservedly. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > greatness of quantity, amount, or degree > high or intense degree > [adverb] > utterly
allOE
allOE
outlyOE
thwert-outc1175
skerea1225
thoroughc1225
downrightc1275
purec1300
purelyc1300
faira1325
finelyc1330
quitec1330
quitelyc1330
utterlyc1374
outerlya1382
plainlya1382
straighta1387
allutterly1389
starkc1390
oultrelya1393
plata1393
barec1400
outrightc1400
incomparablyc1422
absolutely?a1425
simpliciter?a1425
staringa1425
quitementa1450
properlyc1450
directly1455
merec1475
incomparable1482
preciselyc1503
clean?1515
cleara1522
plain1535
merely1546
stark1553
perfectly1555
right-down1566
simply1574
flat1577
flatly1577
skire1581
plumb1588
dead?1589
rankly1590
stark1593
sheera1600
start1599
handsmooth1600
peremptory1601
sheerly1601
rank1602
utter1619
point-blank1624
proofa1625
peremptorily1626
downrightly1632
right-down1646
solid1651
clever1664
just1668
hollow1671
entirely1673
blank1677
even down1677
cleverly1696
uncomparatively1702
subtly1733
point1762
cussed1779
regularly1789
unqualifiedly1789
irredeemably1790
positively1800
cussedly1802
heart1812
proper1816
slick1818
blankly1822
bang1828
smack1828
pluperfectly1831
unmitigatedly1832
bodaciously1833
unredeemedly1835
out of sight1839
bodacious1845
regular1846
thoroughly1846
ingrainedly1869
muckinga1880
fucking1893
motherless1898
self1907
stone1928
sideways1956
terminally1974
1677 W. Temple Let. in Wks. (1731) II. 434 The Allegations on either side are blank contrary one to the other.
Compounds
C1. blank-eyed adj., blank-faced adj., blank-looking adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > fact of being unoccupied > [adjective] > empty of visible objects
void?1523
objectless1798
vacuous1877
blank-looking1881
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > head > face > face with expression or expression > [adjective] > without expression or expressionless
mask-like1584
wooden-faced1605
void1796
muffin-faced1823
blank1859
blank-faced1881
poker-faced1915
stone-faced1932
po-faced1934
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > head > face > eye > [adjective] > by size, shape, etc. > having
goggle-eyedc1384
well-eyed1483
pink-eyed1519
hollow-eyeda1529
small-eyed1555
great-eyed1558
bird-eyed1564
out-eyed1570
large-eyed1575
full-eyed1581
bright-eyed1590
wall-eyed1590
beetle-eyed1594
fire-eyed?1594
young-eyed1600
open-eyed1601
soft-eyed1606
narrow-eyed1607
broad-eyed?1611
saucer-eyed1612
ox-eyed1621
pig-eyed1655
glare-eyed1683
pit-eyed1696
dove-eyed1717
laughing-eyed1784
almond1786
wide-eyed1789
moon-eyed1790
big-eyed1792
gooseberry-eyed1796
red-eyed1800
unsealed1800
screw-eyed1810
starry-eyed1818
pinkie-eyed1824
pop-eyed1830
bead-eyed1835
fishy-eyed1836
almond-eyed1849
boopic1854
sharp-set1865
bug-eyed1872
beady-eyed1873
bias-eyed1877
blank-eyed1881
gape-eyed1889
glass-eyed1889
stone-eyed1890
pie-eyed1900
slitty-eyed1908
steely-eyed1964
megalopic1985
1881 H. James Portrait of Lady xxxvi, in Macmillan's Mag. June 91/1 It was her habit to interpose a good many blank-looking pauses.
1882 J. Parker Apostolic Life (1884) III. 63 The blank-eyed villagers.
1887 G. Meredith Ballads & Poems 61 He raced..across a ground Flint of breast, blank-faced.
1921 V. Woolf Writer's Diary 8 Apr. (1953) 31 This diary being a kindly blankfaced old confidante.
C2. In various special collocations.
a. (In sense A. 2.)
blank acceptance n. one not having the amount filled in.
blank bar n. ‘a Plea in Bar, which in an Action of Trespass is put in to compel the Plaintiff to assign the certain place where the Trespass was committed’ (Blount Law Dict. 1670).
blank bond n. a bond in which a blank is left for the creditor's name.
blank charter n. a document given to the agents of the crown in Richard II.'s reign, with power to fill it up as they pleased; hence figurative liberty to do as one likes.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > legal right > [noun] > document conferring right or privilege > to be filled in at choice
blank charter1398
society > authority > lack of subjection > freedom or liberty > freedom of action or from restraint > [noun] > scope or free opportunity
roomeOE
leisure1303
libertyc1425
free chase1467
scope1534
roomtha1540
swinge1542
swing1584
blank charter1593
freedom1623
field1639
play1641
free agencya1646
range1793
expatiationa1848
leaveway1890
open slather1919
headroom1932
1398 Hist. Croyland. Cont. in Rer. Angl. Script. Vet. (1684) I. 493 Quadam alba charta vocata Blankechartre..quod utique Regis Richardi in posterum causa exitii magna fuit.
1593 J. Donne Satires iii That God hath with his hand Sign'd kings blank-charters, to kill whom they hate.
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II i. iv. 47 Our substitutes at home shall haue blanke charters . View more context for this quotation
Thesaurus »
Categories »
blank cheque n. one not having the amount filled in (see also cheque n. 3).
blank credit n. ‘an authorized permission given to draw on an individual or firm to a certain amount’ (Ogilvie).
blank flange n. (see quot. 1940).
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > closed or shut condition > that which or one who closes or shuts > [noun] > closure for a vessel, tube, etc. > disc or flange at end of pipe
blank flange1940
1940 Chambers's Techn. Dict. 94/2 Blank flange, a disc, or solid flange, used to blank off the end of a pipe.
blank indorsement n. a bill in which the indorsee's name is omitted.
b. (In sense A. 3.)
blank-cartridge n. a cartridge containing no ball.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > missile > ammunition for firearms > [noun] > cartridge > type of cartridge
ball cartridge1768
blank-cartridge1826
wire cartridge1829
Schultze cartridge1885
centre-fire1889
blank1896
1826 Gentleman's Mag. May 458/2 Their carbines..were only loaded with blank cartridges.
Categories »
blank-door n. Architecture an imitation of a door.
blank-tire n. a tire without a flange.
blank-tooling n. = blind-blocking; see blind adj. 14.
blank wall n. (a) a wall without an opening in it; (b) an apparently impenetrable obstacle, esp. in to come up against a blank wall (cf. brick wall n.1 2).
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > difficulty > hindrance > [noun] > one who or that which hinders > a hindrance, impediment, or obstacle > insurmountable or impenetrable
brick wall1571
firewall1578
iron curtain1819
blank wall1904
Chinese wall1907
the world > space > relative position > closed or shut condition > that which or one who closes or shuts > a barrier > [noun] > wall > other types of wall
sidewall1381
brick wall1465
outwall1535
parpen1591
parapet1598
inwall?1611
breastwork1673
parapet wall1682
dwarf1718
screen1761
screen wall1770
hollow wall1823
alure1853
curtain wall1859
core-wall1899
blank wall1904
1904 G. F. Goodchild & C. F. Tweney Technol. & Sci. Dict. 54/1 Blank wall, a wall without an opening in it.
1930 Economist 9 Aug. 290/1 Restriction proposals in the rubber-growing industry have apparently come up against a blank wall.
1958 Times 17 Nov. 11/3 The Advisory Council on Standards for Consumer Goods..has continued to come up against a blank wall of opposition on matters which were clearly worrying it a year ago.
blank-window n. an imitation-window.
c.
blank-form n. see blanch n.
point blank n. see point-blank n.
Draft additions September 2017
blank call n. a telephone call in which the caller does not speak; now (chiefly Indian English) such a telephone call made to threaten, annoy, or harass its recipient (cf. nuisance call n. at nuisance n. and adj. Compounds 2).
ΚΠ
1957 Observer 10 Nov. 3/3 They [sc. the Samaritans] have an average of a hundred calls a day including a number of ‘blank calls’..[from] people who..never talk.
1996 Times of India 8 Apr. a5 The..telephone exchange here receives 4 to 5 fresh complaints every day from subscribers who get malicious or blank calls... Offenders often call and hold on without saying anything.
2014 S. P. Zaheer My Carpet of Rainbows iii. ii. 308 It was a blank call. Why the hell will a kidnapper make a blank call!
Draft additions March 2021
blank canvas n. something likened to an artist's canvas before it is painted, esp. something unformed or open-ended enough to allow for a wide range of creative possibilities; cf. blank slate n. at Additions.Earliest as part of an extended metaphor, with reference to painting; later often transferred to other artistic contexts.
ΚΠ
1817 S. T. Coleridge Biographia Literaria I. v. 45 We seem to ourselves merely passive to an external power, whether as a mirror reflecting the landscape, or as a blank canvas on which some unknown hand paints it.]
1848 Athenæum 2 Dec. 1216/3 The aria..presents a wider surface of blank canvas than most of Handel's oratorio songs.
1947 Times Lit. Suppl. 21 June 311/2 Shakespeare had far more to communicate than anyone else, and he could not do it if he started with a blank canvas.
2016 Cardiff Life Oct. 86/3 With its tasteful, neutral decor..this gorgeous des res is pretty much a blank canvas.
Draft additions March 2021
blank slate n. a person or thing likened to a slate which has not been written upon, in having an absence of content or innate characteristics, and thus with potential to develop (or be developed) in a wide variety of ways; cf. a clean slate at slate n.1 2b.In early use applied esp. to the mind, sometimes with reference to the theory (common in empirical philosophy) that humans are born without mental content; cf. tabula rasa at tabula n. 1b.
ΚΠ
1889 Illustr. London News 12 Jan. 34/2 To find one's mind like a blank slate is a phenomenon.]
1889 Graphic 9 Nov. 567/2 Very ingenuous, and a mere blank slate as regards knowledge.
1931 Jrnl. Royal Soc. Arts 79 506 East Kent, though a blank slate industrially, is like the greater part of these islands a very complex palimpsest of civilised effort, past and present.
1990 A. Stevens On Jung iv. 54 The human infant is no blank slate, passively submitting to the inscription of life's lessons.
2015 Vancouver Sun 19 Aug. b4/1 Policy-wise, the Grits this spring replaced what had been an alarmingly blank slate with a suite of deftly calibrated measures.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1887; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
blankv.
/blaŋk/, U.S. /blæŋk/ The senses are mixed up with those of blanch v.1,blanch v.2, and blench v.1, blenk v., blink v.† 1. transitive. To make white, whiten; to make pale.† 4. To turn away. Obsolete. (Cf. blanch v.2 4.)† 6. intransitive. To be disconcerted; to blench; to shrink back. Obsolete.† 7. (?) To blanch = to strip off the skin. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > white or whiteness > whitening > make white [verb (transitive)]
whiteOE
emblanch1393
blank1484
whiten1552
frost1596
albify1599
frostbite?1605
hoar1605
dealbate1623
impearl1640
marble1658
bewhite1678
whiten1699
rewhiten1725
bewhiten1810
ermine1825
powder1890
1484 W. Caxton tr. G. de la Tour-Landry Bk. Knight of Tower (1971) liiii. 78 A baronnesse..the whiche as men saide blanked and popped or peynted her self.
1605 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. i. vi. 168 His brow Was neuer blanck't with pallid feare.
1652 E. Benlowes Theophila ix. li. 137 The Coral Die is blankt at Lips so red.
2. To put out of countenance; to nonplus, disconcert, ‘shut up.’ Cf. blank adj. 5. archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > inattention > mental wandering > confuse, bewilder [verb (transitive)] > disconcert
blemish1544
blank1548
to put out1598
unsettle1644
disconcert1695
to put off1909
to put (someone) off (his) strokea1914
to bend (a person) out of shape1955
to throw off1978
1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Mark xii. f. 28 The Saduceis were put to a foyle and blanked.
1587 Sir P. Sidney & A. Golding tr. P. de Mornay Trewnesse Christian Relig. xxix. 542 At this text R. Eliezer was blankt and held his peace.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Bejaune..a doult, noddie; one that's blankt, and hath nought to say, when hee hath most need to speak.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Confuter vn tesmoing, to disgrace, confound, puzle, blanke him; to put him out of countenance, or, driue him to a Non-plus.
1653 T. Urquhart tr. F. Rabelais First Bk. Wks. i. xiii. 65 If I do not blank and gravel you..and put you to a non-plus.
1820 W. Scott Abbot II. iii. 71 Which fairly blanked the bold visage of Adam Woodcock.
3.
a. To frustrate, make void, invalidate, bring to nought, disconcert (plans, etc.). archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > difficulty > hindrance > hindering completely or preventing > hinder completely or prevent [verb (transitive)] > thwart or foil
false?c1225
confoundc1315
blenk?a1400
matea1400
interrupt1464
blench1485
fruster?a1513
frustrate?a1513
infatuate1533
disappoint1545
prevent1555
foila1564
blank1566
thwart1581
confute1589
dispurpose1607
shorten1608
foola1616
vain1628
balk1635
throwa1650
scotch1654
bafflea1674
crossbar1680
transverse1770
tomahawk1773
throttle1825
wreck1855
stultify1865
derail1889
to pull the plug1923
rank1924
1566 T. Stapleton Returne Vntruthes Jewelles Replie iv. 104 To dasel the Readers eyes withall, or to blancke his..Argument.
a1599 E. Spenser View State Ireland 73 in J. Ware Two Hist. Ireland (1633) All former purposes were blancked.
a1658 J. Cleveland On Happy Memory Alderm. Hoyle in Wks. (1687) 210 And thus..blanks the Reckning with their Host.
1814 W. Scott Waverley II. i. 15 Their sports blanked by the untoward accident. View more context for this quotation
b. To dismiss (a sports team) without a score; to prevent from scoring. North American.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > winning, losing, or scoring > win, lose, or score [verb (transitive)] > win > defeat
overplayc1460
smother1676
lurch1678
outplay1702
thrash1789
defeat1830
spreadeagle1832
thresh1852
whitewash1867
blank1870
annihilate1886
nip1893
slam1907
plaster1919
skittle1919
rip1927
maul1928
demolish1938
massacre1940
trounce1942
hammer1948
murder1952
to shut out1952
zilch1957
zip1964
trip1974
1870 N.Y. Herald 2 July 5/4 St. John..again blanked the Mutuals and then scored two.
1887 Courier-Jrnl. 26 May 2/6 In the eighth and ninth innings both [baseball] teams were blanked.
1951 Amer. Speech 26 230 Michigan Normal blanks Ball State.
1968 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 5 Feb. 18/7 Oakville Oaks came up with their best effort of the season last night to blank Toronto Marlboros 3–0.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > inaction > not doing > abstaining or refraining from action > abstain or refrain from (action) [verb (transitive)] > avoid or shun > turn aside from > cause to
writhea1400
wrya1400
reflecta1500
reverta1500
withstand1508
reversec1540
declinea1555
evert1569
deflecta1575
divert1609
bias1628
blank1640
avert1697
shunt1858
sidetrack1887
ride1908
1640 J. Yorke Union of Honour 49 This unexpected aversion..blanckt the Scots.
1659 J. Gauden Ἱερα Δακρυα 139 Nor are people to be blanked or scared from any thing which they list to call their Religion.
5.
a. To render blank or void; to veil from sight. Also const. out.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > hiding, concealing from view > hide, conceal [verb (transitive)]
heeleOE
forhelec888
i-hedec888
dernc893
hidec897
wryOE
behelec1000
behidec1000
bewryc1000
forhidec1000
overheleOE
hilla1250
fealc1325
cover1340
forcover1382
blinda1400
hulsterc1400
overclosec1400
concealc1425
shroud1426
blend1430
close1430
shadow1436
obumber?1440
mufflea1450
alaynec1450
mew?c1450
purloin1461
to keep close?1471
oversilec1478
bewrap1481
supprime1490
occulta1500
silec1500
smoor1513
shadec1530
skleir1532
oppressa1538
hudder-mudder1544
pretex1548
lap?c1550
absconce1570
to steek away1575
couch1577
recondite1578
huddle1581
mew1581
enshrine1582
enshroud1582
mask1582
veil1582
abscondc1586
smotherc1592
blot1593
sheathe1594
immask1595
secret1595
bemist1598
palliate1598
hoodwinka1600
overmaska1600
hugger1600
obscure1600
upwrap1600
undisclose1601
disguise1605
screen1611
underfold1612
huke1613
eclipsea1616
encavea1616
ensconcea1616
obscurify1622
cloud1623
inmewa1625
beclouda1631
pretext1634
covert1647
sconce1652
tapisa1660
shun1661
sneak1701
overlay1719
secrete1741
blank1764
submerge1796
slur1813
wrap1817
buttress1820
stifle1820
disidentify1845
to stick away1900
1764 C. Churchill Gotham iii. 20 When dreary Night..blank'd half the globe.
1881 M. E. Braddon Asphodel III. 331 An obelisk..blanking out earth and heaven with its gigantic form.
1937 Times 16 Apr. 8/6 A smoke screen by howitzers to blank out hostile observation posts and machine-guns.
b. To indicate by a blank or dash (——).
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > writing > written character > punctuation > punctuate [verb (transitive)] > omission marks
apostrophize1611
blank1789
1789 J. Bentham Wks. (1843) X. viii. 189/1 In page 3 of my letter, line 5, political Foxical, dele Foxical, I doubt it is hardly safe; or blank it thus F——ical.
c. Blank (often printed ——, but read ‘blank’) is also, for decorum's sake, substituted for a word of execration.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > malediction > oaths > [verb (transitive)] > euphemisms for stronger oaths
blank1873
1873 C. Reade Simpleton xxiii Blank him! that is just like him; the uneasy fool!
1878 A. Edwardes Jet iii. 272 ‘—— the colonel of the regiment!’ exclaims Mark..‘Blank the colonel of the regiment!’ With slow unmistakable gusto she lingers over the monosyllable ‘Blank.’
d. To seal or render inoperative. Const. off, up.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > closed or shut condition > close or shut [verb (transitive)] > seal up > and render inoperative
blank1928
1928 Daily Tel. 6 Mar. 5/6 The steam inlet and exhaust passages are blanked up and the cylinder subjected to a hydraulic pressure.
1932 Amer. Speech 7 264 Blank off, to case off (a portion of an oil sand).
1940 Chambers's Techn. Dict. 94/2 Blank flange, a disc, or solid flange, used to blank off the end of a pipe.
1963 Guardian 7 Mar. 3/2 Three-wheeled vehicles with the reverse gear ‘blanked off’..remain Group ‘A’ vehicles..attracting a higher rate of duty.
e. intransitive. To become blank or empty.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > fact of being unoccupied > be or become unoccupied or empty [verb (intransitive)]
emptc1275
empty1587
clear1886
blank1955
1955 ‘J. Christopher’ Year of Comet i. 11 The callscreen blanked.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > fear > dismay > lose heart or be dismayed [verb (intransitive)]
mayc1380
bash1382
dismayc1390
darea1400
dreepc1430
discourage1524
quail1548
blank1642
despond1655
the mind > emotion > fear > physical symptoms of fear > exhibit physical symptoms [verb (intransitive)] > cower or flinch
wondec897
shuna1000
blencha1250
cowerc1300
scunnerc1425
cringea1525
to play couch-quaila1529
quail1544
winch1605
dwindle1612
blank1642
shy1650
scringec1700
funk?1746
flinch1883
curl1913
1642 D. Rogers Naaman 423 But these would shed the bloud of such and no whit blanke.
1658 W. Gurnall Christian in Armour: 2nd Pt. 134 If thou canst..blank no more, then a cold suitor doth when he hears not from her, whom he never really loved.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being external > covering > uncovering > uncover or remove covering from [verb (transitive)] > strip or make bare > strip of skin
flaya800
beflaya1000
hilda1000
scorchc1430
escorse1546
skin1566
case1575
uncase1575
unskin1598
blank?c1600
excoriate1614
deglubate1623
hide1757
flipe1892
?c1600 (c1515) Sc. Field (Lyme) 330 in I. F. Baird Poems Stanley Family (D.Phil. thesis, Univ. of Birm.) (1990) 243 We blancked them with billes through all their bright armor.
8. Cards. To leave (a card) unsupported by another card of the same suit. Cf. blank adj. 7c.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > card game > play a card [verb (transitive)] > actions or tactics
to hold up?1499
decardc1555
to turn up1580
discard1591
pulla1625
to sit out1659
face1674
to make out1680
to lay out1687
to throw away1707
lead1739
weaken1742
carry1744
to take in1744
force1746
to show down1768
throw1866
blank1884
block1884
cover1885
unblock1885
pitch1890
1884 ‘Cavendish’ Princ. Whist (ed. 14) 100 It is dangerous to unguard an honour, or to blank an ace.
1934 Amer. Speech 9 11/1 A blank King is a King without a guard and to blank a King is to discard its guard.
9. To cut or prepare a blank (see blank n. 9); often const. out. Hence blanked adj., blanking n.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > working with specific materials > working with metal > work with metal [verb (transitive)] > other metalworking processes
burnishc1325
rockc1400
leadc1440
braze1552
run1650
stratify1669
shingle1674
snarl1688
plate1706
bar1712
strake1778
shear1837
pile1839
matt1854
reek1869
bloom1875
siliconize1880
tumble1883
rustproof1886
detin1909
blank1914
anodize1931
roll1972
1914 Amer. Machinist 19 Feb. 342/1 The finished articles..are pierced, embossed, bent at a right-angle, and blanked in one operation.
1914 Amer. Machinist (European ed.) 28 Mar. 66E/2 Describing their guard [for power presses] the firm classify press operations under blanking, clipping, and raising.
1943 F. D. Jones Engin. Encycl. (ed. 2) 136 A blanking die consists essentially of: a die-block..which has an opening that conforms to the shape of the part to be cut or blanked out.
1958 C. D. Hanbury Industr. Efficiency Rural Labour viii. 89 Small dish blanking... Strip metal is..fed into the machine, which blanks one disk every time a foot pedal is operated.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1887; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1480
adj.adv.c1325v.1484