blind

[ blahynd ]

adjective

, blind·er, blind·est.

1. unable to see; having severely impaired or absolutely no sense of sight; sightless:

   a blind man.

   Antonyms: seeing

2. unwilling or unable to perceive or understand: He was blind to all arguments.

   They were blind to their children's faults.

   He was blind to all arguments.

   Antonyms: receptive

3. not characterized or determined by reason or control: blind chance.

   blind tenacity;

   blind chance.

4. not having or based on reason or intelligence; absolute and unquestioning:

   She had blind faith in his fidelity.

   Synonyms: unreasoning, thoughtless, rash, uncritical, irrational

   Antonyms: rational

5. lacking all consciousness or awareness:

   a blind stupor.

6. drunk ( def 1 ).
7. hard to see or understand:

   blind reasoning.

8. hidden from immediate view, especially from oncoming motorists:

   a blind corner.

9. of concealed or undisclosed identity; sponsored anonymously:

   a blind ad signed only with a box number.

10. having no outlets; closed at one end: a blind mountain pass.

    a blind passage;

    a blind mountain pass.

11. Architecture. (of an archway, arcade, etc.) having no windows, passageways, or the like.
12. dense enough to form a screen:

    a blind hedge of privet.

13. done without seeing; by instruments alone:

    blind flying.

14. made without some prior knowledge: a blind lead in a card game.

    a blind purchase;

    a blind lead in a card game.

15. of or relating to an experimental design that prevents investigators or subjects from knowing the hypotheses or conditions being tested.
16. of, relating to, or for blind persons.
17. Bookbinding. (of a design, title, or the like) impressed into the cover or spine of a book by a die without ink or foil.
18. Cooking. (of pastry shells) baked or fried without the filling.
19. (of a rivet or other fastener) made so that the end inserted, though inaccessible, can be headed or spread.

verb (used with object)

1. to make sightless permanently, temporarily, or momentarily, as by injuring, dazzling, bandaging the eyes, etc.:

   The explosion blinded him.

   We were blinded by the bright lights.

2. to make obscure or dark:

   The room was blinded by heavy curtains.

3. to deprive of discernment, reason, or judgment:

   a resentment that blinds his good sense.

4. to outshine; eclipse:

   a radiance that doth blind the sun.

noun

1. something that obstructs vision, as a blinker for a horse.
2. a window covering having horizontal or vertical slats that can be drawn out of the way, often with the angle of the slats adjustable to admit varying amounts of light.
3. venetian blind ( def ).
4. Chiefly Midland U.S. and British. window shade.
5. a lightly built structure of brush or other growths, especially one in which hunters conceal themselves:

   a duck blind.

   Synonyms: ambush

6. an activity, organization, or the like for concealing or masking action or purpose; subterfuge:

   The store was just a blind for their gambling operation.

7. a decoy.
8. Slang. a bout of excessive drinking; drunken spree.
9. Poker. a compulsory bet made without prior knowledge of one's hand.
10. Usually the blind. (used with a plural verb) persons who lack the sense of sight:

    The blind are said to have an acute sense of hearing.

adverb

1. into a stupor; to the degree at which consciousness is lost:

   He drank himself blind.

2. without the ability to see clearly; lacking visibility; blindly:

   They were driving blind through the snowstorm.

3. without guidance or forethought:

   They were working blind and couldn't anticipate the effects of their actions.

4. to an extreme or absolute degree; completely:

   The confidence men cheated her blind.

blind

/ blaɪnd /

adjective

1. 1. unable to see; sightless
   2. ( as collective noun ; preceded by the )

      the blind

2. usually foll by to unable or unwilling to understand or discern
3. not based on evidence or determined by reason

   blind hatred

4. acting or performed without control or preparation
5. done without being able to see, relying on instruments for information
6. hidden from sight

   a blind stitch

   a blind corner

7. closed at one end

   a blind alley

8. completely lacking awareness or consciousness

   a blind stupor

9. informal.
   very drunk
10. having no openings or outlets

    a blind wall

11. without having been seen beforehand

    a blind purchase

12. (of cultivated plants) having failed to produce flowers or fruits
13. (intensifier)

    not a blind bit of notice

14. turn a blind eye
    turn a blind eye to disregard deliberately or pretend not to notice (something, esp an action of which one disapproves)

adverb

1. without being able to see ahead or using only instruments

   flying blind

   to drive blind

2. without adequate knowledge or information; carelessly

   to buy a house blind

3. (intensifier) (in the phrase blind drunk )
4. bake blind
   bake blind to bake (the empty crust of a pie, pastry, etc) by half filling with dried peas, crusts of bread, etc, to keep it in shape

verb

1. to deprive of sight permanently or temporarily
2. to deprive of good sense, reason, or judgment
3. to darken; conceal
4. foll by with to overwhelm by showing detailed knowledge

   to blind somebody with science

5. slang.
   intr to drive very fast
6. slang.
   intr to curse (esp in the phrase effing and blinding )

noun

1. modifier for or intended to help blind and partially sighted people

   a blind school

2. a shade for a window, usually on a roller
3. any obstruction or hindrance to sight, light, or air
4. a person, action, or thing that serves to deceive or conceal the truth
5. a person who acts on behalf of someone who does not wish his identity or actions to be known
6. old-fashioned.
   Also calledblinder a drunken orgy; binge
7. poker a stake put up by a player before he examines his cards
8. hunting a screen of brush or undergrowth, in which hunters hide to shoot their quarry Brit namehide
9. military a round or demolition charge that fails to explode

Usage

It is preferable to avoid using phrases such as the blind . Instead you should talk about blind and partially sighted people

Derived Forms

• ˈblindness, noun
• ˈblindly, adverb

Other Words From

• blinding·ly adverb
• blindness noun
• half-blind adjective
• half-blindly adverb
• self-blinded adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of blind¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English adjective cognate with Gothic blinds, Old Norse blindr, German, Dutch blind (from Germanic blindaz, perhaps akin to blend; original sense uncertain, perhaps “to make cloudy”); verb derivative of the adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of blind¹

Old English blind ; related to Old Norse blindr , Old High German blint ; Lettish blendu to see dimly; see blunder

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. fly blind. fly ²( def 34 ).

More idioms and phrases containing blind

• fly blind
• rob someone blind
• turn a blind eye

Synonym Study

Blind, stone-blind, purblind mean unable to see. Blind means unable to see with the physical eyes. Stone-blind emphasizes complete blindness. Purblind refers to weakened vision, literally or figuratively. See curtain.

Example Sentences

The numbers reinforce another article in the Post, in which cops confessed to “turning a blind eye” to minor crimes.

From The Daily Beast

And in this era of impact-blind, across-the-board budget cuts, we see an opportunity.

From The Daily Beast

What designer West lacks in productivity, he more than makes up for in pure, unadulterated confidence and blind anger.

From The Daily Beast

Sandra Bullock won for ‘The Blind Side’ and Al Pacino lost for both Godfather movies.

From The Daily Beast

Strandf could photograph anything from a blind woman to a picket fence and make the image indelible.

From The Daily Beast

On May 13 Polavieja arrived in Barcelona physically broken, half blind, and with evident traces of a disordered liver.

From Project Gutenberg

The blind Samson of labor will seize upon the pillars of society and bring them down in a common destruction.

From Project Gutenberg

I do not wholly like these cold and stately English, yet I think I am not blind to their many sterling qualities.

From Project Gutenberg

And in that day the deaf shall hear the words of the book, and out of darkness and obscurity the eyes of the blind shall see.

From Project Gutenberg

It is a blind act of unconscious absorption, however little be absorbed.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• curtain
• screen