blister
Americannoun
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blisters
plural
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a thin vesicle on the skin, containing watery matter or serum, as from a burn or other injury.
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any similar swelling, as an air bubble in a coat of paint.
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a relatively large bubble occurring in glass during blowing.
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Military. a transparent bulge or dome on the fuselage of an airplane, usually for mounting a gun.
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Photography. a bubble of air formed where the emulsion has separated from the base of a film, as because of defective processing.
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a dome or skylight on a building.
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the moving bubble in a spirit level.
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a small blisterlike covering of plastic, usually affixed to a piece of cardboard and containing a small item, as a pen, bolt, or medicinal tablet.
verb (used with object)
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blisters,
present (3rd person singular)
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blistered,
past participle, past
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blistering
present participle
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to raise a blister or blisters on.
These new shoes blistered my feet.
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to criticize or rebuke severely.
The boss blistered his assistant in front of the whole office.
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to beat or thrash; punish severely.
verb (used without object)
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blisters,
present (3rd person singular)
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blistered,
past participle, past
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blistering
present participle
noun
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a small bubble-like elevation of the skin filled with serum, produced as a reaction to a burn, mechanical irritation, etc
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a swelling containing air or liquid, as on a painted surface
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a transparent dome or any bulge on the fuselage of an aircraft, such as one used for observation
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slang an irritating person
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slang a rebuke
verb
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to have or cause to have blisters
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(tr) to attack verbally with great scorn or sarcasm
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
blistersimple
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blisterssimple
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have blisteredperfect
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has blisteredperfect
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am blisteringprogressive
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are blisteringprogressive
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is blisteringprogressive
-
have been blisteringperfect progressive
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has been blisteringperfect progressive
Past
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blisteredsimple
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had blisteredperfect
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was blisteringprogressive
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were blisteringprogressive
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had been blisteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of blister
1250–1300; Middle English blister, blester < Old Norse blǣstri, dative of blāstr swelling. See blast, blow 2
Explanation
A blister is a fluid-filled bubble people get where something rubs or burns the skin. Common causes are wearing fancy new shoes, playing sports, and trying to cook bananas flambé. Having a blister is no fun. A blister is a round raised area caused by repeated friction or rubbing. A second-degree burn can also cause a blister. A blister isn’t always a human problem. Plants can get blisters, and sometimes air bubbles on the surface of a painted wall or a shellacked table are called blisters. The verb blister means to form a blister. The Old French root word is blestre, "lump or bump."
Vocabulary lists containing blister
The Distance Between Us
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"The War Works Hard" by Dunya Mikhail
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Neighborhood Odes
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Choi’s advice was to go the other direction: blister them, puree them, drown them in vinegar or chili, add something sweet, blend them into sauces, make them taste like the foods you already crave.
From Salon ● Sep. 15, 2026
As expected, the Dodgers put right-hander Roki Sasaki on the 15-day IL with a blister on the middle finger of his right hand on Thursday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
His signature victory was a record-setting blister up Alpe d’Huez in which he roared through costumed, enthusiastic revelers on his way to a fifth stage win.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Ohtani has been dealing with a small blister on the middle finger of his right hand for his last couple starts, Roberts said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
Bowker peeled open a finger blister and sucked on “Go on,” Azar said.
From "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien
It was so hot and humid that Lee Feaster, a native Texas and the father of freshman wideout Boobie Feaster, said on Tuesday that his wife passed out during the game and still had blisters.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
The downpour turned the path—uphill, then downhill, then uphill again—into a slick mess of red clay and rock; every step had my blisters screaming in a new language.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
The result can be swelling, bruising, bleeding, blisters and discoloration of the skin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
According to the NHS, warning signs include severe pain, redness, blisters, changes in skin colour and vomiting.
From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026
My boots are laced tight, and each step is painful, blisters already forming.
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
Would that make Antetokounmpo a candidate to take the Angels off the hands of Arte Moreno, who at games has been blistered by a large group of shirtless fans chanting “sell the team?”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026
I liked the sausage and kale and look forward to making her blistered Jimmy Nardello pepper pizzas this summer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
Learning a musical instrument can be an arduous journey, one often fraught with blistered fingers, frayed patience and what can seem like an endless series of insurmountable hurdles.
From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2025
As I phrased it back when I first wrote about the dish, “The cheeses meld together to form the most delicious, frico-laced roasted and blistered fennel imaginable.”
From Salon ● Mar. 15, 2025
They blew on her skin, but in spite of their care Nhamo’s feet had blistered and scarred.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
The result was bubbling, blistering and peeling that appeared just weeks after the renovation was completed.
From Salon ● Sep. 12, 2026
For Serena, who is the youngest of five sisters in the blended Williams family, that meant learning to return Venus’s blistering serve on Compton’s public courts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
After a blistering start in 2025 that appeared to solidify Crow-Armstrong as a burgeoning superstar, the Chicago Cubs’ outfielder fell into a dismal slump that not even a full winter could fix.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
The child's parents took him to the accident and emergency department at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, where he was treated for partial blistering to his leg and forearm.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
When the onions were cooked to just the right softness, Dr. Bulkeley piled them in a mass on a linen napkin and applied the blistering poultice to Mercy’s chest.
From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
