黒くろ白しろ

also: こくびゃく · こくはく

く

ろ

し

ろ

Common wordFreq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

noun

black and white

Only with reading くろしろ

Literal pairing or contrast of black and white. In many everyday contexts 白黒 is more common, but 黒白 is attested and understandable.

床ゆかは黒くろ白しろの市いち松まつ模も様ようになっている。
The floor has a black-and-white checkerboard pattern.

noun

right and wrong; black and white; rights and wrongs of a matter

Only with reading こくびゃく / こくはく

Figurative use for deciding which side is right or what the truth of a dispute is. Somewhat stiff or formal; commonest in fixed expressions such as 黒白をつける and 黒白を明らかにする.

裁さい判ばんでこの争あらそいの黒こく白びゃくをつける。
They will settle the rights and wrongs of this dispute in court.
証しょう拠こがそろえば、事じ件けんの黒こく白びゃくは明あきらかになる。
Once the evidence is gathered, the truth of the case will become clear.

See all 6 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈事こと〉の黒くろ白しろを争あらそうto dispute the rights and wrongs of a matter
両りょう者しゃはその契けい約やくの黒くろ白しろを争あらそっている。
Both sides are disputing the rights and wrongs of the contract.
黒くろ白しろが明あきらかになるfor the truth of the matter to become clear
裁さい判ばんでようやく黒くろ白しろが明あきらかになった。
The truth of the matter finally became clear in the trial.

Kanji

黒black
白white

Related words

白しろ黒くろ
白黒 is the everyday word for both literal black-and-white and the idiom about determining right and wrong, while 黒白 is a more formal or literary variant used in the same senses.
是ぜ非ひN5
是非 means the rights and wrongs or pros and cons of a matter in an evaluative or argumentative sense, while 黒白 frames the same idea as a black-versus-white contrast.
善ぜん悪あくN1
善悪 specifically means good and evil in a moral sense, whereas 黒白 more broadly covers determining the truth or merits of a dispute.

Word family

スジグロシロチョウ
Pieris melete; striped white butterfly
クロシロエリマキキツネザル
black-and-white ruffed lemur

Built from

黒くろ+白しろ

Written forms

黒白Usage100%
- くろしろ
  High-priority reading; most transparent for the literal meaning 'black and white.' The reverse order 白黒 is often more familiar in everyday compounds such as 白黒写真.
- こくびゃく
  Sino-Japanese reading used especially in the abstract sense 'right and wrong,' often in set phrases such as 黒白をつける.
- こくはく
  Attested alternate Sino-Japanese reading, but less useful as a learner default and easily confused in sound with 告白.
こくはく
こくびゃく

Etymology

A compound of 黒 'black' and 白 'white.' The contrast between the two colors also supports the figurative meaning of distinguishing right from wrong or settling a matter clearly.