blindness Definition

blind
adj blinder, blindest

1. Not able to see.

Thesaurus: sightless, unseeing, visionless, purblind, blind as a bat, stone-blind, in darkness, eyeless; Antonym: sighted.
2. Blind people as a group; people suffering from blindness (see the 4).

Form: the blind
3. Unable or unwilling to understand or appreciate something unwelcome or undesirable.

Example: blind to his faults
Thesaurus: heedless, unaware, oblivious.
Form: blind to something (always)
4. Unthinking; without reason or purpose.

Example: blind hatred
Thesaurus: inconsiderate, thoughtless, heedless, careless, unaware, hasty, impetuous, oblivious, rash, random, chance, incidental, accidental, unplanned, fortuitous; Antonym: aware, calculated, purposeful.
5. Hidden from sight.

Example: blind entrance
Thesaurus: concealed, hidden, obscured, disguised, dark, dim; Antonym: conspicuous.
6. Not allowing sight of what is beyond.

Example: blind summit
7. Said of flying, landing, navigating or bombing, etc: relying completely on instruments inside the craft, eg when conditions such as darkness or poor visibility do not allow direct visual contact.
8a. Having no openings or windows, etc;

Example: blind wall
8b. Blocked or walled up.

Example: blind arch
9. Closed at one end.

Example: blind alley
Thesaurus: obstructed, blocked, closed, dead-end, without egress.
10. Said of a pastry case: cooked without a filling.
11. Without preparation or previous knowledge.

Example: blind testing
12. Said of a plant: failing to produce flowers.

adverb

1. Blindly; without being able to see.
2. Without having seen, tested or gained proper knowledge of the item concerned.

Example: I can't believe that you bought the car blind

noun

1. A screen to stop light coming through a window, eg one which rolls up (a roller blind) or folds up (a Venetian blind) when not in use. N Amer equivalent window shade.
2. A person, action or thing which hides the truth or deceives.

Thesaurus: front, façade, cover, camouflage, mask, screen, feint, distraction.
3. Anything which prevents sight or blocks out light.

verb blinded, blinding

1. To make someone blind.
2. To make someone unreasonable or foolish, etc.

Thesaurus: deceive, conceal, mislead, delude.

Derivative: blindly

See separate entries.

Idiom: blind as a bat

Completely blind.

Idiom: blind drunk

colloq
Completely and helplessly drunk.

Idiom: not a blind bit of ...

colloq
Not the slightest bit of ...; not any ....
Example: took not a blind bit of notice

Idiom: swear blind

colloq
To state with certainty or declare emphatically.
Example: swore blind that he had already paid

Idiom: the blind leading the blind

Someone inexperienced or incompetent helping another person to do something or telling them about it.

Idiom: turn a blind eye to something

To pretend not to notice it.

Etymology: 11c.

Phrasal Verb: blind someone to something

To make them unable to see it, or incapable of appreciating it.
Example: Jealousy blinded him to all reason

Phrasal Verb: blind someone with something

To confuse or dazzle them with it.
Example: tried to blind me with science

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blindness
noun

1. Serious or total loss of vision in one or both eyes, caused by disease, injury or the normal ageing process.
2. Lack of perception; thoughtlessness; recklessness.