English word origin

Etymology of bleck

From Middle English blek (“ink”), from Old Norse blek (“black tint, ink”), from Old English blæc (“black tint or dye, ink”), from Proto-West Germanic *blak, from Proto-Germanic *blaką (“that which is black; blackness”).

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 3 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

Any black fluid substance, as in blacking for leather, or black grease. · Ink. · Soot, smut. · A black man.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inherited-form mentionblekenm · ink
Derivation mentionbleknon · black tint, ink
Derivation mentionblæcang · black tint or dye, ink
Derivation mention*blakgmw-pro
Derivation mention*blakągem-pro · that which is black; blackness

This page abbreviates 1 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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        "3": "blek",
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      "expansion": "Middle English blek (“ink”)"
    },
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      },
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    },
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      },
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    },
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    }
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      "blek#Old_Norse"
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      "blæc#Old_English"
    ],
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    ],
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    ]
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        "Any black fluid substance, as in blacking for leather, or black grease.",
        "Ink.",
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

verb

To blacken. · To defile.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English blekken, from the noun above.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inherited-form mentionblekkenenm

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗

intj

Alternative form of blech.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Imitative.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for bleck →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-YmxlY2s