black hole

The story

In reference to the physical concept (region of spacetime with extreme gravitational pull), physicist Hong-Yee Chiu attributed the term to his colleague Robert H. Dicke, who stated around 1960–1961 that the objects were like the Black Hole of Calcutta. The first known usage in print was by journalist Ann Ewing in 1964. Widespread popularization of the term is generally credited to a lecture in 1967 by the physicist John Wheeler.

First known use, by meaning

• from 18th c. A place of punitive confinement; a lockup or cell; a military guardroom.
• from 20th c. A region of spacetime that exerts a gravitational pull strong enough that no matter or energy, not even light, can escape it.
• from 20th c. A void into which things disappear for good; an inscrutable or time-wasting area or subject.