stare

[stair]

See more synonyms for stare on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object), stared, star·ing.

to gaze fixedly and intently, especially with the eyes wide open.
to be boldly or obtrusively conspicuous: The bright modern painting stares out at you in the otherwise conservative gallery.
(of hair, feathers, etc.) to stand on end; bristle.

verb (used with object), stared, star·ing.

to stare at: to stare a person up and down.
to effect or have a certain effect on by staring: to stare one out of countenance.

noun

a staring gaze; a fixed look with the eyes wide open: The banker greeted him with a glassy stare.

Verb Phrases

stare down, to cause to become uncomfortable by gazing steadily at one; overcome by staring: A nonsmoker at the next table tried to stare me down.

Idioms

stare one in the face, to be urgent or impending; confront: The income-tax deadline is staring us in the face.

Origin of stare

before 900; Middle English staren, Old English starian; cognate with Dutch staren, German starren, Old Norse stara; akin to stark, starve

Related formsstar·er, nounstar·ing·ly, adverb

Synonyms

See more synonyms for stare on Thesaurus.com

1. See gaze.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for stare

Contemporary Examples

Then he's quiet, while I, nonplussed, just stare until he adds, “The camera must never move.”
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days
David Freeman
December 13, 2014
The teen refused to drop his knife, according to officers, fixed them with “a 100-yard stare,” and walked toward them.
The 14 Teens Killed by Cops Since Michael Brown
Nina Strochlic
November 25, 2014
Strong, young, crisply uniformed, he or she would shake, sigh, stare blankly, or cry, recounting variations of this statement.
Bergdahl’s Bitter Homecoming: The Psychological Cost of War
Jean Kim
July 19, 2014
Over green tea, Than Gyi told us about her village, interrupting herself frequently to stare at us and laugh.
A Little Too Off the Beaten Path in Burma
Katya Cengel
June 2, 2014
We stare in the mirror, we compare ourselves with digitally enhanced images of perfect women, and feel all wrong.
Nicole Kidman Botox Insanity: Why All Women Lose Out When We Obsess Over Stars’ Faces
Emma Woolf
May 25, 2014

Historical Examples

Why does he fling himself from his horse and stare so strangely about him?
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle
She turned to stare at the Inspector with eyes that were very clear and very hard.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
I thought he must be crazed by over-study, and I could only sit and stare at him, open-mouthed.
The Bacillus of Beauty
Harriet Stark
One after another of the eleven men felt the weight of his stare.
The Leopard Woman
Stewart Edward White
Kingozi continued to stare at him in the most uncompromising manner.
The Leopard Woman
Stewart Edward White

British Dictionary definitions for stare

stare¹

verb

(intr often foll by at) to look or gaze fixedly, often with hostility or rudeness
(intr) (of an animal's fur, bird's feathers, etc) to stand on end because of fear, ill health, etc
(intr) to stand out as obvious; glare
stare one in the face to be glaringly obvious or imminent

noun

the act or an instance of staring

Derived Formsstarer, noun

Word Origin

Old English starian; related to Old Norse stara, Old High German starēn to stare, Greek stereos stiff, Latin consternāre to confuse

stare²

noun

dialect a starling

Word Origin

Old English stær

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for stare

v.

Old English starian "to look fixedly at," from Proto-Germanic *star- "be rigid" (cf. Old Norse stara, Middle Low German and Middle Dutch staren, Old High German staren, German starren "to stare at;" German starren "to stiffen," starr "stiff;" Old Norse storr "proud;" Old High German storren "to stand out, project;" Gothic andstaurran "to be obstinate"), from PIE root *ster- "strong, firm, stiff, rigid" (cf. Lithuanian storas "thick," stregti "to become frozen;" Sanskrit sthirah "hard, firm;" Persian suturg "strong;" Old Church Slavonic staru "old;" cf. sterile and torpor). Not originally implying rudeness. Related: Stared; staring.

n.

"starling," from Old English (see starling).

stare

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Synonyms

Examples from the Web for stare

Contemporary Examples

Then he's quiet, while I, nonplussed, just stare until he adds, “The camera must never move.”

The teen refused to drop his knife, according to officers, fixed them with “a 100-yard stare,” and walked toward them.

Strong, young, crisply uniformed, he or she would shake, sigh, stare blankly, or cry, recounting variations of this statement.

Over green tea, Than Gyi told us about her village, interrupting herself frequently to stare at us and laugh.

We stare in the mirror, we compare ourselves with digitally enhanced images of perfect women, and feel all wrong.

Historical Examples

Why does he fling himself from his horse and stare so strangely about him?

She turned to stare at the Inspector with eyes that were very clear and very hard.

I thought he must be crazed by over-study, and I could only sit and stare at him, open-mouthed.

One after another of the eleven men felt the weight of his stare.

Kingozi continued to stare at him in the most uncompromising manner.

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Word Origin

stare2

Word Origin

Word Origin and History for stare

v.

n.

Origin of stare

stare¹

stare²