black eye

noun

Definition of black eye

1 : a discoloration of the skin around the eye from bruising

2a : defeat, setback

b : a bad reputation

Examples of black eye in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

With his powdered wig, his burning black eyes, his bulbous forehead, and his cheeks pitted with smallpox, Goethe must have been a terrifying spectacle. — Andrew Roberts, The New York Review of Books, "Ferdinand Mount," 6 June 2019 The deputy also noticed the woman had a large knot on her forehead, a black eye as well as bruises and scrapes on her arm and face, which the woman had not had when the deputy left her shift earlier that morning. — Elise Schmelzer, The Denver Post, "Denver jail deputy fired, 2 others disciplined for not helping woman suffering from hours of epileptic seizures in cell," 3 July 2019 Max Scherzer just struck out 10 and tossed seven shutout innings with a broken nose and black eye. — Helen Murphy, PEOPLE.com, "Nationals Pitcher Max Scherzer Hits the Field with a Black Eye One Day After Breaking His Nose," 20 June 2019 At the standees in the back of the shop, Hanks indulged Kimmel in one of his longest-running bits, and defaced a Damon standee with a back tooth and black eye. — Marianne Garvey, CNN, "Jimmy Kimmel made Tom Hanks shoplift and spill Disney secrets," 14 June 2019 While the procedure left her with a black eye, Melanie's spokeswoman Robin Baum said it was done early enough to prevent further complications. — Temi Adebowale, Good Housekeeping, "Melanie Griffith Makes Plea to Fans After Revealing "Final Stage" to Remove Skin Cancer," 27 Aug. 2018 Marlow remembers hearing her mother Martha scream and the black eyes and scars following the times her father, Leroy, beat her mother. — Jayne O'donnell, USA TODAY, "Domestic violence 'code of silence' contributes to prevalence across races, classes," 20 Feb. 2018 On Friday, Perrette posted a photo of a crew member with a black eye and stitches. — Jodi Guglielmi, PEOPLE.com, "Pauley Perrette Confirms She Has No Plans to 'Ever' Return to NCIS: 'Please Stop Asking'," 7 June 2019 The memo catalogs other forms of abuse the boys allegedly suffered at the hands of Holt, including black eyes and facial bruising. — Tom Vanden Brook, USA TODAY, "Air Force declines to charge colonel accused of sexually, physically abusing boys," 27 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'black eye.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.