a piece of transparent substance, usually glass, having two opposite surfaces either both curved or one curved and one plane, used in an optical device in changing the convergence of light rays, as for magnification, or in correcting defects of vision.
a combination of such pieces.
some analogous device, as for affecting sound waves, electromagnetic radiation, or streams of electrons.
Anatomy. crystalline lens.
Geology. a body of rock or ore that is thick in the middle and thinner toward the edges, similar in shape to a biconvex lens.
a piece of glass or other transparent material, used to converge or diverge transmitted light and form optical images
Also called: compound lens. a combination of such lenses for forming images or concentrating a beam of light
a device that diverges or converges a beam of electromagnetic radiation, sound, or particles See electron lens
anatomy See crystalline lens
A transparent structure behind the iris of the eye that focuses light entering the eye on the retina.
A piece of glass or plastic shaped so as to focus or spread light rays that pass through it, often for the purpose of forming an image.
A combination of two or more such lenses, as in a camera or telescope.
A device that causes radiation to converge or diverge by an action analogous to that of an optical lens. The system of electric fields used to focus electron beams in electron microscopes is an example of a lens.
First recorded in 1685–95; from New Latin, special use of Latin lēns “a lentil” (from its shape); see lentil
A lens is a curved transparent device that bends light, like the lens of eyeglasses or a contact lens you’ll need if the natural lens in your eye needs help. Cameras have a lens, too. Smile! In an eye, the lens — which is behind the iris — helps focus light on the retina so you can see. It's a lot like the lens in a telescope or camera, which also focuses light and helps form images. You can also use the word lens as a metaphor for how you see things. If you look at sports through the lens of medicine, you might study injuries to players. All these lenses help you see or perceive things.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Turn the historical lens toward Asia, the author tells us, and even the war’s best-known episodes look different.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
But the bright-eyed cameraman often turned the lens to his own community, chronicling small but meaningful moments shaping everyday life in L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
They will come with an improved camera that allows users to adjust the lens aperture.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
He called that view the “most useful lens for Thursday,” questioning what Tesla can charge for fares after it eventually loses a “novelty premium.”
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 3, 2026
She leaned toward the camera with her hand out in front of the lens.
From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste
Saint-Maximin joined Lens on a short-term deal in the second half of last season.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
In his place comes the highly regarded Pierre Sage, whose performance at Lens - where he became Ligue 1's manager of the year - was good enough to attract attention from Liverpool.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
Lens made 426 high turnovers during the 2025-26 season, frequently turning those moments into chances - producing 69 shots and seven goals.
From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026
Crystal Palace have appointed Lens manager Pierre Sage as their head coach on a three-year contract.
From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026
I watched them burst, raising volumes of ruddy smoke in Avion and Lens.
From From Bapaume to Passchendaele, 1917 by Philip Gibbs
Apple touted the phone's multiple cameras, including a front-facing external lens, two back-facing lenses and an internal lens.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
Homendy said most of the cargo on the plane was made up of contact lenses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Their eye lenses, like human lenses, block most wavelengths below roughly 400 nanometers.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 26, 2026
Much of the audience looks like clones of the star rapper, dressed in extremely oversized white tees, baggy denim, thick gold chains, tilted snapbacks and white-framed sunglasses with words written across the lenses.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
None of this persuaded the most die-hard Aristotelians, who simply refused to accept that what was seen through the telescope was real, imagining it to be some artefact produced by the lenses themselves.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
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.
