bleary

adjective

ˈblir-ē 

1

of the eyes or vision : dull or dimmed especially from fatigue or sleep

2

: poorly outlined or defined : dim

a bleary view

3

: very tired

bleary travelers

blearily

ˈblir-ə-lē 

adverb

bleariness

ˈblir-ē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms

• all in
• aweary [archaic]
• beat
• beaten
• burned-out
• burnt-out
• bushed
• dead
• done
• drained
• exhausted
• fatigued
• jaded
• knackered [British]
• limp
• logy
• loggy
• played out
• pooped [slang]
• prostrate
• spent
• tapped out
• tired
• tuckered (out)
• washed-out
• wearied
• weary
• wiped out
• worn
• worn-out

Examples of bleary in a Sentence

She looked at me with bleary eyes.

disoriented, bleary passengers departing from the red-eye

Recent Examples on the Web

These people have already seen each other bleary eyed and mussed (and would probably overlook a little grocery-list making or other multitasking). —Thomas Wiegand, IEEE Spectrum, 25 Aug. 2011

Gennaro, his eyes still red and bleary, has come home with track marks on his arms. —Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 28 Oct. 2024

Deir al-Balah, Gaza CNN — Abu Mohammed stands with red, bleary eyes. —Abeer Salman, CNN, 19 Oct. 2024

More than a few of our out-of-town guests staggered around the ceremony, bleary eyed, having tossed and turned the previous night with headaches. —Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 16 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing bleary

• bleary-eyed

Medical Definition

bleary

adjective

ˈbli(ə)r-ē 

of the eyes or vision

: dull or dimmed especially from fatigue or sleep