as in trade
a system through which things are bought and sold illegally
The black market in prescription drugs is thriving. They unloaded the stolen goods on the black market.
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as in to smuggle
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of black market
Francisco J. Monaldi, The Conversation, 12 Dec. 2025
The 18th Amendment had implemented a nationwide ban on the manufacture, sale and transportation of alcohol, which in turn had fueled a black market for booze and a rise in organized crime.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 5 Dec. 2025
Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 29 Nov. 2025
Analyzing the makeup and variety of greys’ gut microbes can provide insights about where the birds spend time — at large in the wild, or getting shuffled along a black-market trade route, or sitting in a cage at a bird farm.
—Rene Ebersole, Rolling Stone, 18 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for black market
Noun
Most of that oil goes to the black market, and a majority ends up with independent refiners in China.
—Francisco J. Monaldi, The Conversation, 12 Dec. 2025
The 18th Amendment had implemented a nationwide ban on the manufacture, sale and transportation of alcohol, which in turn had fueled a black market for booze and a rise in organized crime.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 5 Dec. 2025
Verb
This wasn’t the first time Moore has been candid about aging, having been especially vocal about it during the press tour for The Substance, a 2024 horror film about a fading celebrity who uses a black-market drug to create a younger, more perfect version of herself.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 29 Nov. 2025
Analyzing the makeup and variety of greys’ gut microbes can provide insights about where the birds spend time — at large in the wild, or getting shuffled along a black-market trade route, or sitting in a cage at a bird farm.
—Rene Ebersole, Rolling Stone, 18 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for black market
Recent Examples of Synonyms for black market
Noun
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The trade association outlined its concerns over consolidation in a statement to a House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee, which is holding a hearing on Wednesday on competition in digital streaming.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
7 Jan. 2026
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The Sabres run into some significant issues down the lineup — upgrading the fourth line should be among Kekäläinen’s most pressing priorities between now and the trade deadline — but young centre Noah Ostlund has helped give Buffalo’s usually problematic fourth line some connective heft and floor.—
Thomas Drance,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Once the code was given, Wedding’s associates would hand over a shipment of cocaine — up to 350 kilos per run — which the truckers would then smuggle into Canada.—
Jesse Hyde,
Rolling Stone,
10 Jan. 2026
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Starlink terminals are known to have been smuggled into Iran during the last large round of protests in 2022 and 2023.—
Colin Sheeley,
NBC news,
10 Jan. 2026
Noun
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But the size of the gray market may be fundamentally at odds with its viability.—
Sarah Zhang,
The Atlantic,
23 Dec. 2025
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While marketing software through Telegram isn’t inherently nefarious, researchers say that Haotian’s customer base has increasingly skewed toward scammers who already seek out information about an array of gray market services on the messaging app.—
Matt Burgess,
Wired News,
18 Dec. 2025
Verb
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About 40 minutes into the film, Linda makes the fatal mistake of bartering with her daughter outside the treatment facility.—
Angelica Jade Bastién,
Vulture,
19 Dec. 2025
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Workers have far less bargaining power to barter for better salaries that once made the jobs so attractive.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
4 Dec. 2025
Noun
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More than three months after a fire destroyed more than a dozen businesses in a shopping center in Colorado's Nederland community, many residents are still pushing for the debris to be cleaned up.—
Sarah Horbacewicz,
CBS News,
12 Jan. 2026
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Initially conceived as a political technology firm largely backing moderate Republicans, the business has broadened its aperture over time to focus on reaching key influential figures across business, government, and media.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The fact we’re getting bootlegged and people are grabbing our voices and using ’em, rap needs to be taken as serious as any other genre!—
Mackenzie Cummings-Grady,
Billboard,
11 July 2025
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In 1920s Anaheim, the big local issue was bootlegging and Catholics, who were seen as foreigners in what was supposed to be an Anglo-Saxon Protestant country.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The credits are available to people who bought health care policies in the Affordable Care Act marketplaces.—
David Lightman,
Sacbee.com,
8 Jan. 2026
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Unrest at the Tehran bazaar is particularly unsettling for officials because the shuttering of shops at the ancient marketplace and protests from the merchant class were key elements that led to the overthrow of the monarchy in 1979.—
Henry Austin,
NBC news,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The families exchanged Christmas cookies as a parting gift.—
Nathan Pilling,
Kansas City Star,
9 Jan. 2026
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Since this is an Outlet item, it can’t be returned or exchanged—but is bound to sell out fast.—
Mariana Best,
Better Homes & Gardens,
9 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Black market.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/black%20market. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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