bezel

noun be·zel \ ˈbē-zəl , ˈbe- \

|Updated on: 5 Aug 2018

Definition of bezel

1 : a rim that holds a transparent covering (as on a watch, clock, or headlight) or that is rotatable and has special markings (as on a watch)

2 gems : the oblique (see ¹oblique 1a) side or face of a cut gem; specifically : the upper faceted portion of a brilliant projecting from the setting — see brilliant illustration

3 jewelry : a usually metal rim of a piece of jewelry in which an ornament (such as a gem) is set

Recent Examples of bezel from the Web

The nearly bezel-free screen still looks great and there's a fingerprint reader hidden under the power button.

— hartford courant, courant.com, "CNET: Best Laptops For Maintaining Your Privacy," 5 July 2018
While part of the chassis is aluminum, the keyboard tray and display bezel are still plastic.

— melissa riofrio, PCWorld, "Hands-on: The Acer Predator Helios 300 Special Edition takes the boring out of budget gaming," 24 May 2018
Each one still has slight black borders running around the screen, so nothing here is totally bezel-free.

— jeff dunn, Ars Technica, "Eyes-on: Vizio takes on LG’s OLEDs with a super-bright quantum dot TV," 12 Apr. 2018
The device has rounded screen corners and still includes bezels, which is disappointing.

— ashley carman, The Verge, "Sony announces its Xperia XA2 Plus, a phone to ‘entertain’," 11 July 2018
The crown might be slightly larger, too, but the lugs, bezel, dial markers, hands, and even the date window placement are true to the original design.

— matt hranek, Condé Nast Traveler, "Time and Place: Longines in Umbria," 27 June 2018
The sleek rectangle has a white bezel to imitate an art frame, three slim legs styled like a tripod, and defaults to an artwork display when not in use.

— Sunset, "Your Next TV Could Double As Art," 22 Jan. 2018
The bezel of the ring has a waterfall of 127 diamonds, a number representing the sum of the jersey numbers of the three players who touched the ball in the Philly Special — Corey Clement (30), Trey Burton (88), and Nick Foles (9).

— michael boren, Philly.com, "Fake Super Bowl rings for Eagles, other teams seized by federal authorities," 3 July 2018
Its wide, black bezels shrink the screen experience but also provide more space for kids to grab the device without closing any tabs.

— valentina palladino, Ars Technica, "Acer Chromebook Tab 10 review: Chrome OS revives Google’s tablet future," 23 June 2018

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