noir

1 of 2

noun

ˈnwär 

1

: crime fiction featuring hard-boiled cynical characters and bleak sleazy settings

an example of classic noir

2

: film noir

a comedy dressed in the trappings of an edgy noir

noirish

ˈnwär-ish 

adjective

noir

2 of 2

adjective

: having a bleak and darkly cynical quality of the kind associated with hard-boiled crime fiction and film noir

a noir thriller

In this boldly styled first novel, Komarnicki follows a 30-year-old homeless man on a noir odyssey of death and survival through the streets of New Orleans and Hong Kong.

—Sybil S. Steinberg

The plot of this violent fairy tale is as noir and nasty as the characters.

—Marilyn Stasio

Examples of noir in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

For a global audience that’s come to associate Nordic TV with an endless parade of noir-ish procedurals, Burden of Justice flips the script, turning the justice system itself into the crime scene. —Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 27 Mar. 2026

Sisters in Yellow is her first novel that is truly plot driven, dipping into the noir genre, but it’s still interwoven with the complex internal life of her characters. —Literary Hub, 23 Mar. 2026

Adjective

The film’s attempt at neo-noir grit has the same effect as seeing private school kids flashing gang signs. —Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 18 Mar. 2026

Arjun Bewakoof is my response, a film with wide appeal, strong music, a compelling love story and a neo-noir suspense core. —Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 2 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

short for film noir

First Known Use

Noun

1977, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1958, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing noir

• beurre noir
• film noir
• pinot noir

Rhymes for noir

• moire
• boudoir