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bleak

1
[ bleek ]
/ blik /
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See synonyms for: bleak / bleaker / bleakest / bleakness on Thesaurus.com

adjective, bleak·er, bleak·est.
bare, desolate, and often windswept: a bleak plain.
cold and piercing; raw: a bleak wind.
without hope or encouragement; depressing; dreary: a bleak future.
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Origin of bleak

1
1300–50; Middle English bleke pale, blend of variants bleche (Old English blǣc) and blake (Old English blāc); both cognate with Old Norse bleikr,German bleich; akin to bleach

synonym study for bleak

3. See austere.

OTHER WORDS FROM bleak

bleakish, adjectivebleakly, adverbbleakness, noun

Other definitions for bleak (2 of 2)

bleak2
[ bleek ]
/ blik /

noun
a European freshwater fish, Alburnus alburnus, having scales with a silvery pigment that is used in the production of artificial pearls.

Origin of bleak

2
1400–50; late Middle English bleke, noun use of bleke pale; see bleak1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use bleak in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for bleak (1 of 2)

bleak1
/ (bliːk) /

adjective
exposed and barren; desolate
cold and raw
offering little hope or excitement; dismala bleak future

Derived forms of bleak

bleakly, adverbbleakness, noun

Word Origin for bleak

Old English blāc bright, pale; related to Old Norse bleikr white, Old High German bleih pale

British Dictionary definitions for bleak (2 of 2)

bleak2
/ (bliːk) /

noun
any slender silvery European cyprinid fish of the genus Alburnus, esp A. lucidus, occurring in slow-flowing rivers

Word Origin for bleak

C15: probably from Old Norse bleikja white colour; related to Old High German bleiche bleach
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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