Black Tuesday

Meanings

1. 1proper nounproper

   October 29, 1929, the day the New York stock market crashed and helped start the Great Depression.

   Grammar: A fixed historical name; it takes no article and is always capitalized.

   Patterns

   • on Black Tuesday
   • the Black Tuesday crash

   Millions of shares were sold on Black Tuesday, and prices collapsed.

   Historians often treat Black Tuesday as the start of the Great Depression.

   Her grandfather lost his savings on Black Tuesday.

2. 2proper nounproperfigurative

   Any day of sudden, severe financial loss or disaster, used by analogy with 1929.

   Grammar: Used loosely in news writing, often with 'a' or 'another' when it is not the 1929 date: 'another Black Tuesday'.

   Patterns

   • another Black Tuesday
   • a Black Tuesday for something

   Traders called it another Black Tuesday after the index fell twelve percent.

   For the airline, the collapse was a Black Tuesday that ended in bankruptcy.

Common combinations

the Black Tuesday crash

The Black Tuesday crash wiped out many small investors.

on Black Tuesday

On Black Tuesday, the market lost billions in hours.

another Black Tuesday

Analysts hoped the fall would not become another Black Tuesday.

Black Tuesday and the Great Depression

Lessons often link Black Tuesday and the Great Depression.

Synonyms and how they differ

the Wall Street Crash

The usual British name for the same 1929 event; it is broader and can cover several bad days that month.

the 1929 crash

A neutral, descriptive label that is clearer for readers who do not know the nickname.

Word family

Black Monday proper noun

A similar nickname for other market crashes, especially October 19, 1987.

Black Thursday proper noun

The name for the earlier heavy selling on October 24, 1929.

Commonly confused: Black Tuesday or Black Friday? Black Tuesday or Black Monday?

Practice

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