bare

adjective

\ ˈber

barer; barest

Definition of bare

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : lacking a natural, usual, or appropriate covering

b(1) : lacking clothing bare feet

(2) obsolete : bareheaded

c : lacking any tool or weapon opened the box with his bare hands

2 : open to view : exposed laying bare their secrets

3a : unfurnished or scantily supplied a bare room

b : destitute bare of all safeguards

4a : having nothing left over or added the bare necessities of life

b : mere a bare two hours away

c : devoid of amplification or adornment the bare facts

5 obsolete : worthless

bare

verb

\ ˈber

bared; baring

Definition of bare (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

: to make or lay (something) bare (see bare entry 1) : uncover

bare

Definition of bare (Entry 3 of 3)

archaic past of bear

Other Words from bare Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym Usage Note on Bear Usage Note on Bear More Example Sentences Learn More about bare

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Choose the Right Synonym for bare

Adjective

bare, naked, nude, bald, barren mean deprived of naturally or conventionally appropriate covering. bare implies the removal of what is additional, superfluous, ornamental, or dispensable. an apartment with bare walls naked suggests absence of protective or ornamental covering but may imply a state of nature, of destitution, or of defenselessness. poor half-naked children nude applies especially to the unclothed human figure. a nude model posing for art students bald implies actual or seeming absence of natural covering and may suggest a conspicuous bareness. a bald mountain peak barren often suggests aridity or impoverishment or sterility. barren plains

Usage Note on Bear

Adjective

There is considerable confusion between the verbs bear and bare. It may help to remember that the verb bare has only one meaning: "to uncover," as in "bare your shoulders" and "a dog baring its teeth." All other uses of the verb are for bear: "bearing children," "the right to bear arms," "bearing up under the stress/weight," "can't bear the thought," "bear south," "it bears repeating."

There is occasional confusion between bear and bare in adjectival uses (as in "he rubbed his bear arms"), but bear is properly a noun and only used like an adjective in the financial phrase bear market. All other uses refer to the state of being uncovered or naked and should therefore be bare: "bare necessities," "bare essentials," "bare arms," "bare bones," "bare-knuckle," and so on.

Usage Note on Bear

Verb

Examples of bare in a Sentence

Adjective

The brittle-looking branches of bare trees reached up from the horizon, and smoke could be seen curling from the chimneys of the sturdy stone houses in the villages we passed through. — David McAninch, Saveur, November 2008 The dining room is warm and comfortable in a quasi-Tuscan-villa style, with bare wood floors, mottled walls, … and a glass room divider etched with images of grapes. — Colman Andrews, Gourmet, March 2007 A scant two hours after his Derby victory, Monarchos was back in his … stall, beneath a bare bulb, eating carrots from a red bucket. — Steve Rushin, Sports Illustrated, 14 May 2001 There was a rug in the front room of the house, but the other floors were bare. Do not let the bare wires touch. He covered her bare arms with his coat. He had a glove on his left hand, but his right hand was bare. The ground was bare where the statue had stood for years. There was only one bare shelf. Her office was pretty bare, having only one desk and one chair. This is the barest room in the house. He only told me the bare facts about what happened.

Verb

Ed McMahon calls upon the canine coach to help him settle down his aggressive … terrier, which is nice to Ed but bares its teeth at guests. — TV Guide, 29 Oct.-4 Nov. 2007 You could argue that the very act of conducting a lengthy poll by telephone skews the response pool. What sort of person bares her soul to pollsters for upward of an hour—and during the holiday season yet? — Katha Pollitt, Nation, 4/11 Aug. 2003 When Eastman called Death in the Afternoon (Hemingway's nonfiction book about bullfighting) "a literary style of wearing false hair on the chest," Hemingway had no other options than to bare his hirsute midsection and duke it out with his rival author in front of their editor, Max Perkins. The common mythology is that Hemingway beat Eastman to a bloody pulp, but Perkins' account had Eastman gaining the upper hand. — Will Manley, Booklist, 1 Apr. 2001 The better analogy is to bare all on the talk shows in which ordinary people are encouraged to reveal intimate aspects of their private lives. — Richard A. Posner, New Republic, 21 Aug. 2000 He bared his chest to show the scar. finally bared the secret that she had kept to herself for so long

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Breakfast and supper took place at the Cannonball gym, a bare-bones kitchen and a basketball court. — Rebecca Bengal, Vogue, "The Power of Nathan Phillips’s Song," 21 Jan. 2019 And as many on-the-go It-girls know well, when done right, bare nails have the power to look incredibly well-groomed and not to mention, totally bridal. — Jenna Rennert, Vogue, "Jennifer Lawrence Reveals Her Engagement Ring—And a Bridal Manicure Trend in the Making," 22 Feb. 2019 At midday, Loeb leaves the telescope and his office and descends to a bare white classroom to introduce the basics of astrophysics to a dozen new students. — Avi Selk, The Seattle Times, "Harvard’s top astronomer says an alien ship may be among us – and he doesn’t care what his colleagues think," 4 Feb. 2019 Millie hit the dance floor hard in her bare feet, and to refuel, Sadie and Millie snuggled up with a burger and fries and posed for the camera. — Zoë Weiner, Teen Vogue, "Millie Bobby Brown and Sadie Sink Were Homecoming Outfit Goals at a Pre-Emmy's Party," 17 Sep. 2018 Then, out of nowhere, a random guy in pajamas and bare feet joins them midway through the race and leaves both runners in the dust. — Si.com Staff, SI.com, "What Is the Essential Baseball Film?," 1 Mar. 2018 Scattered across the grasslands were mysterious fairy circles, round patches of bare ground, that science has yet to explain. — Stanley Stewart, Condé Nast Traveler, "Going Off-Grid in Namibia," 21 Dec. 2018 Kim is sporting a white silk mini dress, long wavy hair, and bare feet in the pictures. — Isabel Greenberg, Harper's BAZAAR, "North West Directed a Photoshoot with Kim Kardashian and It's Obviously Perfect," 18 Dec. 2018 Just drape Marc Jacobs’s navy stole over your bare shoulders for a snowy evening out. — Madeline Fass, Vogue, "These Fabulous Faux-Fur Stoles Will Make Your Old Coat Feel New Again," 8 Jan. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Journalists saw young men stripping shelves bare in some supermarkets that were charred during the demonstrations, and several bodies were seen in the streets. — NBC News, "Strike shuts down Haiti capital after three days of protests," 9 July 2018 Less than a year after the 19-year-old daughter of actor Johnny Depp and model Vanessa Paradis participated in a topless fashion shoot with CR Fashion Book, Depp has dared to bare again. — Maria Pasquini, PEOPLE.com, "Lily-Rose Depp Smiles While Posing Topless on the Beach in Vogue Russia Shoot," 23 June 2018 So Pedersen set it motion a year-long process — promulgating rules, getting the governor’s signature, getting the Legislature and on March 15 Wyoming was ready to help make bare-knuckle history. — Josh Peter, USA TODAY, "Fight club: Legalized bare-knuckle boxing may be next big show in ring," 4 June 2018 Dixie Chicks bare all The Dixie Chicks are no strangers to feuds. — Fox News, "9 of country music's most shocking moments," 4 Oct. 2018 His example lays bare the essence of the Iran protests. — Reza Pahlavi, WSJ, "Iranians Want Our Country Back," 15 Aug. 2018 Buildings bare his name, and his studios, living quarters, and exhibition spaces are scattered throughout the streets and nearby fields. — Hannah Zisman, Marie Claire, "Weekend Travel Guide: Where to Stay, Eat and Drink in Marfa, Texas," 24 July 2018 The most notorious case of disappeared in Mexico laid bare the links between local security forces and criminal gangs. — Juan Montes, WSJ, "‘It’s a Crisis of Civilization in Mexico.’ 250,000 Dead. 37,400 Missing.," 14 Nov. 2018 The disbanding of Basque militant group ETA announced for this week has laid bare the scars of one of Europe’s last violent conflicts. — Washington Post, "Basque survivors warn against forgetting ETA’s violence," 5 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bare.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near bare

Statistics for bare

Last Updated

11 Mar 2019

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Time Traveler for bare

The first known use of bare was before the 12th century

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More Definitions for bare

bare

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of bare

(Entry 1 of 2)

: not having a covering

: not covered by clothing, shoes, a hat, etc.

: not covered by leaves, grass, trees, or plants

bare

verb

English Language Learners Definition of bare (Entry 2 of 2)

: to remove the covering from (something)

See the full definition for bare in the English Language Learners Dictionary

bare

adjective

\ ˈber

barer; barest

Kids Definition of bare

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : having no covering : naked bare feet The trees were bare of leaves.

2 : empty entry 1 sense 1 The cupboard was bare.

3 : having nothing left over or added : mere the bare necessities … Thorton was abreast of him and a bare half-dozen strokes away …— Jack London, The Call of the Wild

4 : bald sense 2 the bare facts