glare

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verb \ ˈgler \

Definition of glare

glared; glaring

intransitive verb

1 a :to shine with a harsh uncomfortably brilliant light

b :stand out, obtrude

2 :to stare angrily or fiercely

glared at me with rage and hate

transitive verb

1 :to express (something, such as hostility) by staring angrily

glared defiance at each other

2 archaic :to cause to be sharply reflected

See glare defined for English-language learners

See glare defined for kids

Examples of glare in a Sentence

The sun glared down relentlessly.
The white snow glared in the morning sunlight.
The teacher glared at him as he walked in late.

Recent Examples of glare from the Web

Tanzila Ahmed, with a streak of purple in her hair and tigers’ faces glaring fiercely from the fabric of her dress, takes the stage at the Smithsonian's 2017 Asian American Literature Festival.

— anika gupta, Smithsonian, "At the Smithsonian’s first Asian-American Lit Fest, Writers Share Falooda, Politics and Poetry," 24 Aug. 2017
The courtroom sketch, which many say depicts a woman who looks nothing like Swift, shows the singer glaring in Mueller’s direction.

— hilary weaver, vanityfair.com, "Taylor Swift Assault Trial Kicks Off with Changing Stories and Hurt Feelings," 9 Aug. 2017
Shooting the basketball was the Missouri men’s glaring Achilles’ heel last season.

— tod palmer, kansascity, "Transfer Kassius Robertson’s shooting addresses massive need for Mizzou," 8 Aug. 2017
The Return, there's a recurring, uncomfortable element that has become too glaring to ignore, and that is its lengthy depictions of violence against women.

— emma dibdin, Marie Claire, "Is There Too Much Violence Against Women in the New 'Twin Peaks'? Mädchen Amick Addresses the Debate," 28 July 2017
Glaring at the sun for any length of time may result in a serious eye injury in which the retina is damaged by the sun’s radiation.

— kate vaught thompson, Cincinnati.com, "Safely view the solar eclipse," 27 July 2017
But after a few glaring mental mistakes and questions about his effort and attitude last season, 2017 will be a make-or-break year for the former Florida State phenom.

— jourdan rodrigue, charlotteobserver, "Injection of speed, a motivated Kelvin Benjamin will change Panthers’ offense," 14 July 2017
Built to shield lifeguards from the glaring sun while also giving them a better view of the beach—and somewhat comfortable quarters—the seemingly simple structures have more going on than meets the eye.

— julia herbst, Los Angeles Magazine, "5 Things You Didn’t Know about L.A.’s Iconic Lifeguard Towers," 13 July 2017
The 2017 Emmy nominations came out on Thursday morning and there's (at least) one glaring omission: The Leftovers, which received just one nomination for Ann Dowd in the category for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series.

— michael sebastian, Esquire, "Carrie Coon's Leftovers Performance Was an All-Time Great. Why Was She Snubbed?," 13 July 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of glare

Middle English glaren; akin to Old English glæs glass

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First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

glare Synonyms

Synonyms

beat, blaze, burn, flame, flare

Antonyms

beam, grin, smile

Related Words

beam, glow, radiate; flash, glance, gleam, glimmer, glint, glisten, glister, glitter, scintillate, shimmer, sparkle, twinkle; bedazzle, blind, daze, dazzle

glare

noun

Definition of glare

1 a :a harsh uncomfortably bright light

the glare of a neon sign

the glare of publicity

; especially :painfully bright sunlight

b :cheap showy brilliance :garishness

enjoyed the glitter and glare of the city's nightlife

2 :an angry or fierce stare

3 :a surface or sheet of smooth and slippery ice

See glare defined for English-language learners

Examples of glare in a Sentence

There was a glare coming off the water.
I was blinded by the glare of the approaching headlights.
I shielded my eyes from the glare of the sun.
The car's headlights are designed to cut down on glare.
She responded to the reporters' questions with an angry glare.

Recent Examples of glare from the Web

Republicans were spared the full media glare of the latest controversy, which broke out during the extended August congressional recess.

— billy house, Bloomberg.com, "Trump Wades Into Race Controversy Again as He Slams GOP Critics," 17 Aug. 2017
The lights are expected to shine down only on the field and have no glare, addressing concerns that residents in the surrounding neighborhood had for many years about having lights there.

— james weber, The Courier-Journal, "After 50 years of football, CovCath debuts stadium lights," 14 Aug. 2017
The lights are expected to shine down only on the field and have no glare, addressing concerns that residents in the surrounding neighborhood had for many years about having lights there.

— james weber, Cincinnati.com, "After 50 years of football, CovCath debuts stadium lights," 14 Aug. 2017
For two days, Mary was there, sort of — part fog, part shadow, part glare of reality.

— fred dickey, sandiegouniontribune.com, "'You come into this world taking your first breath, and ...'," 28 July 2017
On three different occasions, Cain appeared helpless against the sun, his glove trying to block out the glare, before recovering to make a catch.

— rustin dodd, kansascity, "Royals beat Rangers 4-3 on walk-off single in the sun," 16 July 2017
Macy's is ready to bring the rockets' red glare to life at its 41st annual July 4th fireworks extravaganza in New York.

— leada gore, AL.com, "Macy's 4th of July fireworks spectacular: Time, livestream, performers, how to watch," 4 July 2017
In the time before their plane crash, Carolyn felt the pressure from the glare of the paparazzi, while John was dealing with his magazine’s financial problems.

— megan friedman, Harper's BAZAAR, "What You Might Not Know About JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy’s Marriage," 28 June 2017
Event costs $33,000 to produce, including equipment, security, insurance, fire plan and inspection, fire code specialist, and, of course, the rockets’ red glare.

— Ramona Sentinel, "Celebrating 25 Years of Fireworks," 28 June 2017