Meanings
- Something that is trendy, popular; the latest fashion.
The writer and political activist A. Sivanandan has argued that ‘poverty is the new black’ (2001).
2009, Graham Huggan, Ian Law, Racism Postcolonialism Europe, page 772 more examples
These reporters are so caught up in the ‘red is the new black’ mentality," he says, "they're more interested in selling clothes than taking a stand on anything.
2004, Out, volume 4, numbers 1-5, page 14EMILY: ... I'm interested in the brain, and stuff... neurology... it's very trendy right now. RICHARD. Neurology. It's the new black.
2008, Nina Raine, Rabbit, page 49
Origin
The phrase originates with clothing fashion, where at one point black was a fashionable color in clothes, and the next color to become fashionable was referred to as "the new black".
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
the new black. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20new%20black
“the new black.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20new%20black. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “the new black,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20new%20black.
Source: the new black on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.