Blackfishing

noun, verb, slang

noun, verb, slang ·Uncommon ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The practice of appropriating signifiers of black identity, such as darkening the skin, or wearing traditionally black hairstyles. slang, uncountable

    "Judging from not only various records of campus life but also the numerous Instagram accounts of women appearing as "black" personalities — a phenomenon known as "blackfishing" — many do not know better."

Verb
  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of blackfish form-of, gerund, participle, present

Example

More examples

"Judging from not only various records of campus life but also the numerous Instagram accounts of women appearing as "black" personalities — a phenomenon known as "blackfishing" — many do not know better."

Etymology

From blackfish + -ing.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.