myopia

noun

my·​o·​pia mī-ˈō-pē-ə 

1

: a condition in which the visual images come to a focus (see focus entry 1 sense 4) in front of the retina of the eye resulting especially in defective vision of distant objects : nearsightedness

She wears glasses to correct her myopia.

2

: a lack of foresight or discernment : a narrow view of something

… those require long-term commitments, which in our current myopia we cannot take on.

—Adam Smith

Examples of myopia in a Sentence

She wears eyeglasses to correct her myopia.

Recent Examples on the Web

Globally, children in urban areas have higher rates of myopia than those in rural areas, while girls were slightly more likely to suffer from the condition than boys. —Jack Guy, CNN, 25 Sep. 2024

Basically, the Clairo-shade meme is a way of poking fun at the myopia of modern stan culture. —Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2024

Beijing has benefitted from other forms of American myopia as well. —Andrew S. Erickson, Foreign Affairs, 29 Aug. 2019

The Harvard Business School professor Theodore Levitt refers to this phenomenon as marketing myopia. —Dr. Marcus Collins, Forbes, 20 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Greek myōpia, from myōp-, myōps

First Known Use

circa 1654, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

myopia

noun

my·​o·​pia mī-ˈō-pē-ə 

1

: the condition of being nearsighted

2

: a lack of foresight : a narrow view of something

myopic

-ˈō-pik  -ˈäp-ik 

adjective

Medical Definition

myopia

noun

my·​o·​pia mī-ˈō-pē-ə 

: a condition in which the visual images come to a focus in front of the retina of the eye because of defects in the refractive media of the eye or of abnormal length of the eyeball resulting especially in defective vision of distant objects

called also nearsightedness

compare astigmatism sense 2, emmetropia