murk

noun

ˈmərk 

: gloom, darkness

also : fog

murk adjective archaic

Synonyms

• black
• blackness
• candlelight
• dark
• darkness
• dusk
• gloaming
• gloom
• night
• semidarkness
• shade
• shadows
• twilight
• umbra

Examples of murk in a Sentence

We could not see the bottom of the lake through the murk.

a robber lying unseen in the murk

Recent Examples on the Web

With an eye that’s sensitive enough to see a bumblebee in lunar orbit, the telescope will peer into the primordial murk from which stars, galaxies, and planets emerged, piercing the darkness that has occluded the gaze of other great observatories. —Nadia Drake, National Geographic, 25 Dec. 2021

Word History

Etymology

Middle English mirke, probably from Old Norse myrkr darkness; akin to Old English mirce gloom

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

murk

noun

ˈmərk 

: deep darkness or gloom

also : fog entry 1 sense 1a