bleary
Americanadjective
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(of the eyes or sight) blurred or dimmed, as from sleep or weariness.
-
indistinct; unclear.
The day begins with a bleary view of one's world.
-
fatigued; worn-out.
adjective
-
(of eyes or vision) dimmed or blurred, as by tears or tiredness
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indistinct or unclear
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exhausted; tired
Other Word Forms
- blearily adverb
- bleariness noun
Etymology
Origin of bleary
Explanation
Something that's bleary is dull, tired, or unfocused. Your eyes might be too bleary first thing in the morning to focus on the newspaper — at least before you've had a cup of coffee. Bleary almost always describes a person's eyes, although you can also use it simply to mean blurred or exhausted. A day spent traveling from Asia to North America can leave you with bleary eyes, and so can a night of crying after the death of your beloved dog. The word bleary comes from a now-obsolete adjective, blear, "watery or rheumy," which may share a root with the German blerre, "having blurred vision."
Vocabulary lists containing bleary
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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.
She was clad in a sweatshirt and bleary from the early hour.
From Salon • Mar. 24, 2026
I’d say he couldn’t be sincere if he tried, except Powell actually does try for one scene and the bleary, terrified look in his eyes is devastating.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 18, 2026
Instead, my laptop greeted my bleary eyes with a font of good tidings.
From Slate • Mar. 8, 2025
This morning, through bleary eyes, there is some surprise.
From BBC • Jul. 18, 2023
W hen the old house had closed its bleary eyes and settled into sleep, Ammu, wearing one of Chacko’s old shirts over a long white petticoat, walked out onto the front verandah.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
