blur
/bləː
/verb (blurs, blurring, blurred)
Make or become unclear or less distinct: [with object]: tears blurred her vision his novels blur the boundaries between criticism and fiction [no object]: in front of him the page blurred...
- I took one look at them and ran back up to my room with tears blurring my vision.
- She looked at the letter but could not read it for the tears blurring her vision.
- The grey seafog sweeps in, blurring the boundary between sea and land, disorientating anyone held in its spell.
Synonyms
make indistinct, make vague, unfocus, soften;
obscure, dim, fade, make hazy, fog, cloud (over)
literary bedim, befog, becloud
archaic blear
make vague, make unclear, make less distinct;
obscure, muddy, muddle, mix up, confuse, obfuscate, cloud, befog, garble, lessen, weaken;
muddy the waters
become dim, become less sharp, dull, numb, deaden, lessen, decrease, diminish, reduce, mute, tone down
indistinct, blurry, fuzzy, hazy, misty, foggy, shadowy, smoky, faint;
unclear, vague, indefinite, unfocused, obscure, lacking definition, ill-defined, out of focus, nebulous;
woolly, muzzy, bleary
archaic blear
noun
1A thing that cannot be seen or heard clearly: the pale blur of her face the words were a blur...
- The world around her remained a blur even as she heard his fading paw steps.
- He heard the blur say his name but wasn't paying any attention to the feminine voice.
- Passing people just saw a blur and heard the sound of his jacket whipping the air behind him.
Synonyms
indistinct shape, hazy shape, vague shape, something indistinct/hazy/vague, haze, cloud, mist, smear, smudge;
haziness, indistinctness, fogginess, murkiness, cloudiness
1.1Something remembered or perceived indistinctly, typically because it happened very fast: the day before was a blur...
- There's nothing substantive to latch onto - all I remember is a blur of lights, noise and sweaty torsos.
- God, I wish I THOUGHT about what was going on then… who knows, I can only remember blurs… and Shane comes in.
- The rest of the evening throughout the night was a fast blur as the maids scurried and everyone got ready to leave.
Origin
Mid 16th century (in the sense 'smear that partially obscures something'): perhaps related to blear.