close one's eyes to

Idioms

Also, shut one eyes to. Deliberately ignore, refuse to notice. For example, Jill closed her eyes to the danger and pushed off downhill, or The professor shut her eyes to students who read a book during her lecture. [Early 1700s] For a synonym see turn a blind eye.

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.

"One has only not to close one's eyes to shut out the light," Alexey Alexandrovitch went on.

From Anna Karenina by Garnett, Constance

"One could close one's eyes to the glare," said Mrs. Gould.

From Nostromo, a Tale of the Seaboard by Conrad, Joseph

This should not make one wish for war nor believe in war nor close one's eyes to its horrors and results.

From Crime: Its Cause and Treatment by Darrow, Clarence

One does not wish to be pessimistic, but it is foolish to close one's eyes to bare fact.

From Across China on Foot by Dingle, Edwin John

The Commonwealth seemed to sink deeper each day, and it was difficult to close one's eyes to the terrible truth that for it there was no salvation.

From The Deluge, Vol. I. (of 2) An Historical Novel of Poland, Sweden, and Russia. by Sienkiewicz, Henryk

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023