Blackwork

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A form of counted-thread embroidery that is usually stitched on even-weave fabric with a twisted thread. uncountable

    "All those garments are long gone since, that Katherine embroidered with Spanish blackwork."

  2. 2
    Work connected with funerals, as an undertaker's assistant or a maker of mourning clothes, etc. obsolete, uncountable

    "In Mary Barton (1848), the seamstress sewing black mourning clothes is referred to as being engaged in 'blackwork', while the manufacturing company, the Courtaulds, held a monopoly on crapes from the onset of funeral practices […]"

  3. 3
    A style of tattoo with areas of solid black ink. uncountable

Example

More examples

"All those garments are long gone since, that Katherine embroidered with Spanish blackwork."

Etymology

From black + work.

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