blear

1 of 2

verb

ˈblir 

bleared; blearing; blears

transitive verb

1

: to make (the eyes) sore or watery

2

: dim, blur

blear

2 of 2

adjective

1

: dim with water or tears

2

: obscure to the view or imagination

Synonyms

Verb

• becloud
• bedim
• befog
• blacken
• blur
• cloud
• darken
• dim
• dislimn
• fog
• fuzz (up)
• haze
• mist
• obscure
• overcast
• overcloud
• overshadow
• shadow
• shroud

Adjective

• bleary
• blurry
• dim
• faint
• foggy
• fuzzy
• gauzy
• hazy
• indefinite
• indistinct
• indistinguishable
• misty
• murky
• nebulous
• obscure
• opaque
• pale
• shadowy
• unclear
• undefined
• undetermined
• vague

Examples of blear in a Sentence

Verb

her image was bleared, as if I were staring at it through a watery lens

Adjective

I can't describe him; all I saw was a blear figure for an instant.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English bleren, probably from Old English *blerian; akin to Low German bleer-oged bleary-eyed

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing blear

• blear-eyed

Kids Definition

blear

1 of 2 verb

ˈbli(ə)r 

1

: to make (the eyes) sore or watery

2

: dim entry 2 sense 1, blur

bleared sight

blear

2 of 2 adjective

: dim with water or tears

bleary

ˈbli(ə)r-ē

adjective

Medical Definition

blear

1 of 2 transitive verb

ˈbli(ə)r 

: to make (the eyes) sore or watery

blear

2 of 2 adjective

: dim with water or tears

blear-eyed

-ˈīd 

adjective