blink
Americanverb (used without object)
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blinks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
blinked,
past participle, past
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blinking
present participle
-
to close and reopen the eyes, especially involuntarily.
Every time I blink, it makes the cut on my eyelid hurt.
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to look with half-shut eyes or rapidly closing and opening eyes.
I blinked at the harsh morning light.
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to be startled, surprised, or dismayed (usually followed byat ).
She blinked at his sudden fury.
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to look evasively or with indifference; ignore (often followed byat ).
to blink at another's eccentricities.
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to shine unsteadily, dimly, or intermittently; twinkle; flicker.
The light on the buoy blinked in the distance.
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to yield or back down from a confrontation.
All eyes are on the two nations' standoff, waiting to see who blinks.
verb (used with object)
-
blinks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
blinked,
past participle, past
-
blinking
present participle
-
to close and reopen (the eye or eyes), usually rapidly, repeatedly, or involuntarily;
She blinked her eyes in an effort to wake up.
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to cause (something) to twinkle or shine intermittently.
We blinked the flashlight frantically, but there was no response.
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Rare. to ignore deliberately; evade; shirk.
Although deaths continue to rise, the authorities have blinked the problem.
noun
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blinks
plural
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an act or instance of closing and reopening the eyes, especially repeatedly or involuntarily.
She claimed not to be startled, but her blink betrayed her.
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the act or condition of flickering, twinkling, or shining intermittently.
The faithful blink of the lighthouse comforted the crew.
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a gleam; glimmer.
There was not a blink of light anywhere.
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Chiefly Scot. a glance or glimpse.
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Meteorology.
idioms
verb
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to close and immediately reopen (the eyes or an eye), usually involuntarily
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(intr) to look with the eyes partially closed, as in strong sunlight
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to shine intermittently, as in signalling, or unsteadily
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(tr; foll by away, from, etc) to clear the eyes of (dust, tears, etc)
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to be surprised or amazed
he blinked at the splendour of the ceremony
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to pretend not to know or see (a fault, injustice, etc)
noun
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the act or an instance of blinking
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a glance; glimpse
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short for iceblink
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slang not working properly
Usage
What does blink mean? To blink is to open and close the eyes rapidly, usually involuntarily. A blink is the act of blinking. To blink is also to shine unsteadily, as a light that is about to die might. In a figurative sense, to blink means to be startled or dismayed, as in Carter blinked at all the money his business partner spent on traveling. To blink can also mean to ignore or avoid something, as in Society will blink at rude behavior if the person being rude is powerful enough. Example: Blink your eyes when you see the light flash.
Synonym Usage
See wink 1.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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blinksimple
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blinkssimple
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have blinkedperfect
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has blinkedperfect
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am blinkingprogressive
-
are blinkingprogressive
-
is blinkingprogressive
-
have been blinkingperfect progressive
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has been blinkingperfect progressive
Past
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blinkedsimple
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had blinkedperfect
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was blinkingprogressive
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were blinkingprogressive
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had been blinkingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of blink
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English verb blincken, variant of blenchen, blenken “to quail, shrink back, blench” ( see blench 1); cognate with Dutch, German blinken
Explanation
To blink is to briefly close your eyes. The bright sunlight first thing in the morning might make you blink rapidly, until your eyes adjust. Your eyes blink reflexively, when you're not even thinking about it, but you can also deliberately blink back tears. Certain lights blink as well, like your car's turn signal, flashing on and off. A figurative way to blink is to hesitate or give up, especially at a confrontation: "The lawyers kept holding out for a settlement, waiting for the other side to blink first." The origin of blink is probably the Middle Dutch blinken, "to glitter."
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:
But the widespread suggestion that you'll be able to blink and miss the Budget has got some hackles up in the Treasury.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
They can change things in the blink of an eye, so imperceptibly that users will barely notice a change if at all.
From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026
"It was like a blink, and at the same time it was intense, it went so fast," Vaccarello told CNN during an interview to mark his ten years at the brand in May.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
A tiny aquatic organism made of just one cell can compress its body to one quarter of its original length in under five milliseconds, hundreds of times faster than a person can blink.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026
I could get to Yonder in a blink with this boot, and I could run away if more trouble came along.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
Mark Zuckerberg named mine “Dash,” and whenever I open Muse, the cute little fella blinks at me as he swivels his necklike body part from right to left.
From Slate ● Oct. 14, 2026
One of the last things Hal Jordan’s hologram tells John before he blinks out, possibly forever, will define Pierre’s hero moving forward, along with this series, should it earn a second season.
From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026
“When one blinks, will the rest stop investing in the buildout?”
From MarketWatch ● May 15, 2026
It's who blinks first or last wins or loses, and that's what you want to watch.
From BBC ● May 2, 2026
She blinks before she takes her eyes off Calvin.
From "The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle" by Leslie Connor
She blinked, paused, and then muttered: “In the winter.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
It was the U.S Treasury market that blinked first and threatened dysfunction.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
The mood completely shifted and shifted some more when the news came through that Rangers had blinked first in the title race.
From BBC ● Apr. 26, 2026
In the back-and-forth fourth quarter, the Lakers blinked first as Doncic missed a go-ahead jumper with 12 seconds left.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2026
I blinked back a fresh wave of tears.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
Shaylee Bent concluded the thumping, ending a move where multiple England tackles were shrugged off without blinking.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
Every five or 15 minutes, another pager returned to the host stand, blinking and vibrating in the hands of a customer whose table was finally ready.
From Salon ● Oct. 17, 2026
Her daughter had asked her to move closer and “without blinking an eye, I said yes. It was a no-brainer. It was logical. It was the best decision ever,” Minken said.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2026
They have a blinking LED light when recording.
From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026
“Brigit gave me a chocolate Paragon coin. One with the blinking eye on it.”
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
