- present participle of glare.
glaring
Americanadjective
-
shining with or reflecting a harshly bright or brilliant light.
- Synonyms:
- blinding
-
very conspicuous or obvious; flagrant.
several glaring errors in spelling.
-
staring in a fiercely or angrily piercing manner.
-
excessively showy or bright; garish.
adjective
-
conspicuous
a glaring omission
-
dazzling or garish
Synonym Usage
See flagrant.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of glaring
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English: see origin at glare 1, -ing 2
Explanation
Whether it's a bright light or a fault, glaring things are obvious. You just can't miss them. Something glaring is obvious to everyone. Sometimes, there's a glaring light that's in your eyes, such as the glaring beams of the sun. Other times, it could be a glaring fault. For example, if you're a very short basketball player, your height is something everyone knows you have to overcome: it's a glaring problem for that sport. Things that are glaring in this way are almost always bad: there aren't any glaring ice cream cones or puppies. You can't avoid looking at things that are glaring, but you wish you could.
Vocabulary lists containing glaring
Essential Academic Vocabulary for High School Students, List 3
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ACT Vocabulary List
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Beowulf: A New Telling
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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.
It has been a glaring problem for more than a year.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
But this explanation has a glaring problem: The pattern is impossible to ignore.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
They’re peppy and fruity … and a glaring recession indicator.
From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026
The loopholes have been glaring at the Ram temple, with the accused reportedly taking advantage of weak counting processes and surveillance lapses.
From Barron's ● Jul. 19, 2026
It was a cold, starry night, and even without looking up he could feel the red eye of the Great Auroch glaring down at him.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
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.
