blackface

noun

black·​face ˈblak-ˌfās 

often attributive

1

: dark makeup worn to mimic the appearance of a Black person and especially to mock or ridicule Black people

specifically, historical : such makeup worn by white entertainers (as in minstrel shows) performing racist caricatures of Black people

Note: The wearing of blackface by white performers was, from the early 19th through the mid-20th centuries, a prominent feature of minstrel shows (see minstrel sense 3a) and similar forms of entertainment featuring exaggerated and inaccurate caricatures of Black people. The use of blackface is considered deeply offensive.

compare brownface, yellowface

2

plural blackfaces : a performer wearing blackface : minstrel sense 3a

Examples of blackface in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Even though Shakespeare’s play was written for a Black lead, for centuries directors had cast white performers in blackface. —Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 15 Apr. 2026

Digital ethics expert Davi Ottenheimer argued that the presentation evoked both blackface and the fantasy of a controllable Black servant. —Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 8 Apr. 2026

Many early cartoon characters, including Mickey Mouse, had been modeled after blackface minstrel characters. —Jared Bahir Browsh, The Conversation, 7 Apr. 2026

Ironically, Hollywood responded by producing a rash of films featuring whites in blackface—most famously Al Jolson in 1927’s The Jazz Singer, the film credited with launching the sound era. —Literary Hub, 25 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1847, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing blackface

• digital blackface

Rhymes for blackface

• abase
• airspace
• apace
• backspace
• biface
• birthplace
• boldface
• bookcase
• braincase
• briefcase
• carcase
• crankcase