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.
2
Examples of blackface in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
According to The Times, the documentary covers allegations that Chase, who had become frustrated with his character’s escalating bigotry and a scene in which the character uses a hand puppet wearing blackface, said a racial slur when asking whether his character would be made to say it next.
—
Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 3 Jan. 2026
The incident that led to his firing involved a scene in which Chase’s character Pierce Hawthorne performs a puppet show in which the hand puppet character performs in blackface.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 30 Dec. 2025
Louis Weslyn and Charles Albert wrote a horrifically racist blackface minstrel song called The Witch Behind the Moon that included lyrics about a Black witch who lived behind the moon and could fly down on her broomstick to snatch up children.
—Time, 21 Nov. 2025
That was a change from how Democrats had handled comparable situations before: For example, in 2019, Martin’s predecessor, Tom Perez, had urged then-Gov. Ralph Northam to quit, after photos of him wearing blackface resurfaced.
—David Weigel, semafor.com, 31 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for blackface
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Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 3 Jan. 2026
The incident that led to his firing involved a scene in which Chase’s character Pierce Hawthorne performs a puppet show in which the hand puppet character performs in blackface.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 30 Dec. 2025
Louis Weslyn and Charles Albert wrote a horrifically racist blackface minstrel song called The Witch Behind the Moon that included lyrics about a Black witch who lived behind the moon and could fly down on her broomstick to snatch up children.
—Time, 21 Nov. 2025
That was a change from how Democrats had handled comparable situations before: For example, in 2019, Martin’s predecessor, Tom Perez, had urged then-Gov. Ralph Northam to quit, after photos of him wearing blackface resurfaced.
—David Weigel, semafor.com, 31 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for blackface
Cite this Entry
“Blackface.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blackface. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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