stare

American  

[stair] / stɛər /

verb (used without object)

• stares,
  present (3rd person singular)
• stared,
  past participle,  past
• staring
  present participle

1. to gaze fixedly and intently, especially with the eyes wide open.

2. to be boldly or obtrusively conspicuous.

   The bright modern painting stares out at you in the otherwise conservative gallery.

3. to be patently or compellingly obvious.

   The stark, staring fact is, you can't do something with nothing.

4. (of hair, feathers, etc.) to stick out or stand on end; bristle.

   Both male and female pheasants are rough-footed and have staring feathers around the head and neck.

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verb (used with object)

• stares,
  present (3rd person singular)
• stared,
  past participle,  past
• staring
  present participle

1. to stare at.

   to stare a person up and down.

2. to effect or have a certain effect on by staring.

   They all laughed at me and stared me into silence.

noun

• stares
  plural

1. a staring gaze; a fixed look with the eyes wide open.

   The banker greeted him with a glassy stare.

verb phrase

1. stare down to cause to become uncomfortable by gazing steadily at one; overcome by staring.

   A nonsmoker at the next table tried to stare me down.

idioms

1. stare (something) in the face, to confront or be confronted by (something unpleasant).

   The company is staring bankruptcy in the face.

2. stare one in the face,

   1. (especially of something undesirable) to be patently or compellingly obvious.

      Sounds like a far-fetched theory, but when the evidence is staring you in the face, you have to take notice.

   2. to be urgent or impending; be about to happen.

      The income tax deadline is staring us in the face.

3. staring down the barrel of,

   1. having (a firearm) aimed at one, especially at close range.

      He turned his head and found himself staring down the barrel of a rifle.

   2. facing (a threat, challenging situation, or imminent disaster).

      Motorists are staring down the barrel of a major hike in the price of fuel.

stare ¹ British  

/ stɛə /

verb

1. to look or gaze fixedly, often with hostility or rudeness

2. (intr) (of an animal's fur, bird's feathers, etc) to stand on end because of fear, ill health, etc

3. (intr) to stand out as obvious; glare

4. to be glaringly obvious or imminent

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noun

1. the act or an instance of staring

stare ² British  

/ stɛə /

noun

1. dialect a starling

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Synonym Usage

See gaze.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• starer
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• stares
  plural

Participles

• staring
  present
• stared
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• stare
  simple
• stares
  simple
• have stared
  perfect
• has stared
  perfect
• am staring
  progressive
• are staring
  progressive
• is staring
  progressive
• have been staring
  perfect progressive
• has been staring
  perfect progressive

Past

• stared
  simple
• had stared
  perfect
• was staring
  progressive
• were staring
  progressive
• had been staring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will stare
  simple
• will have stared
  perfect
• will be staring
  progressive
• will have been staring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of stare

First recorded before 900; Middle English staren, Old English starian; cognate with Dutch staren, German starren, Old Norse stara; akin to stark, starve

Explanation

To stare is to fix your eyes on a subject. As hard as it might be to resist looking at them for long periods of time, it's not polite to stare at celebrities. The noun stare is a certain kind of gaze — a long, intense one. The verb to stare is the act of staring, of locking one's eyes somewhere. When one stares at something, one looks at it for a long period of time, often with great intensity and without blinking. That's why one loses a staring contest when one blinks. Try not to stare at people when they're eating. It's rude! A stare is usually more intense and creepier than a gaze.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

stare stares stared staring

Watching Banderas’ chef stare at the Atlantic, it may occur to you that a cook can no longer afford a waterfront shack on the sand.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

It’s not enough for a film to explain its meaning; it must also say something about that message and its broader significance to stare down the “classic” label.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026

Today, while some retailers still accept checks, an attempt to pay with anything other than cash or card is likely to result in a blank stare from a Gen Z cashier.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026

Some stare blankly into space, others check their phones, reading the news or answering messages.

From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026

My knees lock and we both stare at each other, neither of us able to find the words that need to be spoken.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

“If somebody is giving you any kind of stares or conflict, you’ve got to talk to the staff. You can’t use your fists or your feet,” Kaye said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026

Elsewhere in Washington, the now-defunct US Institute of Peace was renamed after Trump, and his face stares down from huge banners outside the Department of Justice and Department of Agriculture.

From Barron's ● Jun. 24, 2026

Scotland finished the opening half strongly, their confidence rising, those worried stares on the faces of their supporters giving way to blessed hope.

From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2026

Her caged parakeet in the upper corner stares back at us, acknowledging our voyeurism.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026

She stares out the window as if our neighborhood is some breathtaking vista.

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

As I stared into empty niches that once contained massive wooden statues of saints, I meditated on how fragile our democracy is.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 4, 2026

Later that year, he twice froze during press conferences, stared into space, and had to be assisted.

From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026

A wave of brides and grooms made their way to MSG as bystanders stared and cheered, taxis honked and protesters gathered outside.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026

"I'm not a model," he said, after his picture was taken as he stared at the floor.

From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026

Catching Mama’s look he stared from her to Jans in confusion.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

I was staring at my 61-year-old reflection as I repeated these mantras suggested by my new therapist SuzAnn, embarrassed at the idiocy although I lived alone in a small West L.A. guesthouse.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

I am 100% aware that you don’t mention money, but it seems like you would be staring a gift horse in the mouth by persisting with this argument.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026

In practice, according to the federal judge who’s spent two years staring at how it works, it identifies almost nobody.

From Slate ● Jul. 31, 2026

"I had been staring at this fossil for a while," Bhullar said.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 30, 2026

I emptied it into my hand and the next moment was staring in disbelief at my Alpina watch.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Related Words

• beam
• gawk
• glare
• look
• peer