blink
Americanverb (used without object)
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blinks,
present (3rd person singular)
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blinked,
past participle, past
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blinking
present participle
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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)
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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 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
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are blinkingprogressive
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is blinkingprogressive
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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:
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
“A week ago it felt like it was 40 days away,” Adams said, “and you blink and we’re right here ready to go.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
It’s the weakest of the bunch financially and the most likely to blink first.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
It is a case of "blink, and you'll miss it", the investment bank says.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
But—and here was the start of a great mystery—the market didn’t so much as blink.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Meta glasses have a built-in LED light which blinks when they are recording images and cannot be turned off.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
“When one blinks, will the rest stop investing in the buildout?”
From MarketWatch ● May 15, 2026
"For instance, is there a strategic timing of a person's blinks so they would not miss out on what is being said?"
From Science Daily ● Dec. 23, 2025
Just don’t be surprised when you start to miss the imperfect ones, blinks, bad moods and all.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 30, 2025
She blinks a few times, her eyelids fluttering.
From "I Can Make This Promise" by Christine Day
At 40-30, the trophy in her sights, Rybakina could have blinked.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
The sun disappeared, the streetlights blinked on, and a shiver passed through the crowd that had nothing to do with the temperature.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
It was the U.S Treasury market that blinked first and threatened dysfunction.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
If the D&B C-suite had any initial misgivings about putting their chips on raves, no one I spoke to blinked.
From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026
I blinked hard as she told me her story, silently willing my eyes not to allow any tears to fall.
From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler
For me, among so many other things, I enjoy without measure watching great reporters crack their knuckles and create a saga where once stood a blinking cursor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026
"I forgot to look down until I heard our baby's cry. I saw her face, gasping just as she did. Her eyes, wide and unfocused, taking in the light and shadow, blinking rapidly."
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
The other day, I found myself looking at a blinking cursor in a blank address bar in a new tab of my web browser.
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2026
Installations, complete with blinking lights, video and music, now occupy former intake, surgery and recovery floors.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2026
Abby closed her mouth, blinking at him through her tears.
From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret
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.
