bare

[ bair ]

See synonyms for: bare bared barest bares on Thesaurus.com

adjective,bar·er, bar·est.

without covering or clothing; naked; nude: bare legs.
without the usual furnishings, contents, etc.: bare walls.

open to view; unconcealed; undisguised: his bare dislike of neckties.
unadorned; bald; plain: the bare facts.
(of cloth) napless or threadbare.
scarcely or just sufficient; mere: the bare necessities of life.
Obsolete. with the head uncovered; bareheaded.

verb (used with object),bared, bar·ing.

to open to view; reveal or divulge: to bare one's arms; to bare damaging new facts.

Origin of bare

before 900; Middle English; Old English bær; cognate with Old Frisian ber,Dutch baar,Old Saxon, Old High German, German bar,Old Norse berr,Lithuanian bãsas barefoot, Russian bos; akin to Armenian bok naked

synonym study For bare

2. Bare, stark, barren share the sense of lack or absence of something that might be expected. Bare, the least powerful in connotation of the three, means lack of expected or usual coverings, furnishings, or embellishments: bare floor, feet, head. Stark implies extreme severity or desolation and resultant bleakness or dreariness: a stark landscape; a stark, emotionless countenance. Barren carries a strong sense of sterility and oppressive dullness: barren fields; a barren relationship. 6. See mere¹.

Other words for bare

1	undressed
2	plain, stark, empty, barren
8	uncover, expose

See synonyms for bare on Thesaurus.com

Opposites for bare

covered

See antonyms for bare on Thesaurus.com

Other words from bare

barish, adjective
bareness, noun

Other definitions for bare (2 of 2)

bare²

[ bair ]

verbArchaic.

simple past tense of bear¹.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use bare in a sentence

There are bare shelves, shuttered theaters, darkened screens, shadowy hallways, and empty chairs in want of lethargic tourists and overeager tour guides.
You have until Nov. 22 to visit these six Smithsonian museums. Here’s what to expect. | Kelsey Ables | November 19, 2020 | Washington Post
Bring the glaze to a bare simmer, then remove from the heat.
Orange-sriracha glazed duck and roasted fruit are a stunning sheet-pan dinner combination | Olga Massov | November 10, 2020 | Washington Post
What’s left is bare soil whose structure and mineral content has changed, notes Sam Chan.
Jumping ‘snake worms’ are invading U.S. forests | Megan Sever | November 9, 2020 | Science News For Students
As the brilliant bare skin on males grows more subdued and their snoods are no longer swollen, they settle into fairly large flocks for the winter.
Three love stories about birds that will delight your heart | Laura Erickson | November 6, 2020 | Popular-Science
Somehow Honnold managed to stop her fall by grabbing onto the whizzing rope with his bare hands.
Behind the Scenes of Emily Harrington's Historic Climb | Andrew Bisharat | November 6, 2020 | Outside Online

The reality TV mogul bared her butt—and everything else, too—for Paper Magazine in a spread that sent Twitter into a tizzy.
Kim Kardashian Cheekily Breaks the Internet | Kevin O’Keeffe | December 29, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
You better take it before your filthy fraudulent self is bared to the nation.
Why the FBI’s Suicide Note to MLK Still Matters | Nick Gillespie | November 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The reality star bared her infamous behind on the cover of Paper magazine, and the web went wild.
Kim Kardashian Bares Her Shiny, Bounteous Butt, Breaks the Internet | Marlow Stern | November 12, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
But Young has chewed into each storyline with not just her teeth bared, but also her soul.
How 'Scandal' Star Bellamy Young Transformed Mellie Into Fans' Favorite Character | Kevin Fallon | April 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Remember the outcry when Miley Cyrus bared just her back (let alone her backside) for Vanity Fair?
Pictures of Justin Bieber Naked Leak, and We Just Don’t Know How to Feel | Kevin Fallon | August 12, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
"'Bared the lion in hith den—the Doog-dug-lath——'" Abraham stopped and took a long breath.
The Soldier of the Valley | Nelson Lloyd
Wherefore I have also bared thy thighs against thy face, and thy shame hath appeared.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version | Various
He saw the royal glance, cold and penetrative, before which all bowed and heads were bared.
Balsamo, The Magician | Alexander Dumas
Mr. Hartley, with bared head, was wearing a look of grave reverence.
The Sunbridge Girls at Six Star Ranch | Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter
But were it a strong man, he bared his arm, and let the frenzied hermit bury his teeth in the quivering flesh.
The Myths of the New World | Daniel G. Brinton

British Dictionary definitions for bare (1 of 2)

bare¹

/ (bɛə) /

adjective

unclothed; exposed: used esp of a part of the body
without the natural, conventional, or usual covering or clothing: a bare tree

lacking appropriate furnishings, etc: a bare room
unembellished; simple: the bare facts
(prenomial) just sufficient; mere: he earned the bare minimum
with one's bare hands without a weapon or tool

verb

(tr) to make bare; uncover; reveal

Origin of bare

Old English bær; compare Old Norse berr, Old High German bar naked, Old Slavonic bosǔ barefoot

Derived forms of bare

bareness, noun

British Dictionary definitions for bare (2 of 2)

bare²

/ (bɛə) /

verb

archaic a past tense of bear 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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