Aristotle explains how words that are often translated as
"white" and
"black" have different meanings in different contexts.
English: ... for example, in the case of clear and dim, for sound is said to be clear and dim and so is colour. Now there is no difference in the terms used, but the variation in kind is immediately obvious in their use; for clear is not used in the same sense as applied to colour and as applied to sound. (Loeb#391, p. 311)
Greek: … οἷον ἐπὶ τοῦ λευκοῦ καὶ μέλανος. Φωνὴ γὰρ λευκὴ καὶ μέλαινα λέγεται, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ χρῶμα. Τοῖς μὲν οὖν ὀνόμασιν οὐδὲν διαφωνεῖ· τῷ δ´ εἴδει κατάδηλος ἐν αὐτοῖς εὐθέως ἡ διαφορά· οὐ γὰρ ὁμοίως τό τε χρῶμα λευκὸν λέγεται καὶ ἡ φωνή. Aristotle: Topica [106a]
"λευκός" ≈ "bright, light, pale, happy" and, if the context is color, "white" or "light".
"μέλας" ≈ "dark, dim, indistinct" and, if the context is color, "black" or "dark".
For color, it is "light" and "dark", which could be "white" and "black".
For sound, as in a musical sound, it is "clear" and "dim" or "indistinct".
