blinding
Americannoun
noun
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sand or grit spread over a road surface to fill up cracks
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the process of laying blinding
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Also called: mattress. a layer of concrete made with little cement spread over soft ground to seal it so that reinforcement can be laid on it
adjective
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making one blind or as if blind
blinding snow
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most noticeable; brilliant or dazzling
a blinding display of skill
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of blinding
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at blind, -ing 1
Explanation
If something is blinding, it's so bright that it makes you lose your vision temporarily. The blinding light of a camera flash can be very annoying. The bright or dazzling light of fireworks, a flashlight, or even light glinting off of a mirror or a diamond necklace can all be blinding, rendering you briefly unable to see. Anything you can't see through can be described this way, like blinding rain or the blinding white of a blizzard, and even pain is sometimes blinding. The word shares an Old English root with blind, blendan, "to deprive of sight."
Vocabulary lists containing blinding
Words for Cheese Writers
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"Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night" by Dylan Thomas
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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.
The sun is blinding hot, but that has not deterred the tourist hordes from splashing about in the ocean.
From BBC • May 16, 2026
For now, Microsoft and its software peers aren’t companies; they’re narratives of tech’s next generational disruption, all happening at blinding speed.
From Barron's • Mar. 13, 2026
“I think it’s awesome,” guard Austin Reaves said of the bright — no, blinding — lights trained constantly on the team.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 5, 2026
In nutrition studies, full blinding is often difficult because people usually know what they are eating.
From Science Daily • Feb. 25, 2026
Bright, blinding searchlights flashed on, aimed at us and at the mound of food, so that when we tried to run away from it, we could not see where we were going.
From "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH" by Robert C. O'Brien
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.
