haze

play

noun \ ˈhāz \

Definition of haze

1 a :fine dust, smoke, or light vapor causing lack of transparency of the air

b :a cloudy appearance in a transparent liquid or solid; also :a dullness of finish (as on furniture)

2 :something suggesting atmospheric haze; especially :vagueness of mind or mental perception

See haze defined for English-language learners

See haze defined for kids

Examples of haze in a Sentence

The bar was filled with a smoky haze.
She stumbled around in a drug-induced haze.

Recent Examples of haze from the Web

In 2012, huge fires that were intentionally set to clear the land for palm oil ripped through the swamp, killing wildlife and blanketing surrounding areas in a thick haze.

— binsar bakkara, The Seattle Times, "AP PHOTOS: Palm oil kills orangutans in Indonesia peat swamp," 26 Aug. 2017
The bright disk that usually lights everything, burns skin, feeds plants and tells animals when to sleep will become a blank circle, surrounded by the shifting haze of its atmosphere.

— sarah scoles, Discover Magazine, "Eclipse 2017: Mind Melt," 7 Aug. 2017
An element making this extreme weather more extreme: haze blowing in from wildfires blazing in British Columbia, Canada.

— jen kirby, Daily Intelligencer, "Extreme Heat Wave Is Cooking the Pacific Northwest," 3 Aug. 2017
Related stories from Idaho Statesman What's that haze?

— katy moeller, idahostatesman, "Why is the air in the Treasure Valley so yucky right now?," 3 Aug. 2017
In the blistering summer, an atmospheric lid traps haze, sometimes darkened by mountain forest fires.

— scott smith, The Seattle Times, "California farm region plagued by dirty air looks to Trump," 20 July 2017
Friday marked a return to routine for Miami, though a haze was still trapped in Marlins Park from the earlier All-Star festivities.

— matthew defranks, Sun-Sentinel.com, "AJ Ramos blows save as Yasiel Puig blasts 2nd HR, Dodgers beat Marlins," 14 July 2017
The complete anti-haze manifesto, posted at blog.averybrewing.com, makes provocative, if beer-geeky, reading.

— peter rowe, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Which beers best quench the thirst of extreme athletes?," 13 July 2017
Gabrels makes his guitar chime and toll or wash and ripple, with both a metallic clarity and a smoky haze.

— john adamian, courant.com, "Reeves Gabrels At Cafe Nine," 12 July 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of haze

probably back-formation from hazy

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1706

See Words from the same year

haze Synonyms

Synonyms

brume, fog, gauze, mist, murk, reek, smog, soup

Related Words

bank, cloud, fume, miasma, smoke, smother, steam

Near Antonyms

alertness, levelheadedness

Other Climate/Meteorology Terms

monsoon, occlusion, ozone, rime, squall, zephyr

haze

verb

Definition of haze

hazed; hazing

transitive verb

:to make hazy, dull, or cloudy

intransitive verb

:to become hazy or cloudy

Recent Examples of haze from the Web

Jeff Heuerman hazed rookie and former Wolverine Jake Butt with a new haircut.

— tim bielik, cleveland.com, "New upgrades might come to OSU's practice facility, crunching J.T. Barrett's numbers: Buckeye Breakfast," 23 Aug. 2017
Park officials now follow an action plan for aggressive goats that includes tracking interactions, closing areas where goats follow people, hazing goats and even killing some goats that are aggressive and unresponsive to hazing.

— evan bush, The Seattle Times, "Aggressive mountain goats in Olympic National Park: how to help decide their fate," 3 Aug. 2017
Confidence: Medium-High Tonight: Skies are increasingly clear and haze free.

— ian livingston, Washington Post, "D.C.-area forecast: Comparably temperate and tame through the weekend," 15 July 2017
Besides the incident at the party, three of the newest fraternity members were hazed, according to the accusations in the report.

— annie martin, OrlandoSentinel.com, "UCF fraternity suspended amid accusations of hazing, sexual misconduct," 26 June 2017
Cavallaro said at the start of winter Fish and Game employees had to haze some elk herds off private land before intensive feeding was underway.

— tom holm, idahostatesman, "Fish and Game will spend years rehabbing Tex Creek area to keep elk out of trouble," 5 June 2017
This year alone, Loyola University, the University of Central Florida and the University of Arizona have suspended fraternities after hazing allegations.

— CBS News, "Interfraternity CEO calls Penn State hazing death an "unacceptable reflection on humanity"," 24 May 2017
Most Popular A new federal lawsuit against Baylor University alleges football players routinely recorded gang rapes and staged dog fights during hazing parties in a program that fostered sexual violence.

— jim vertuno, Seventeen, "A New Lawsuit Alleges Baylor University Football Players Recorded Their Gang Rapes," 18 May 2017
A new federal lawsuit against Baylor University alleges football players routinely recorded gang rapes and staged dog fights during hazing parties in a program that fostered sexual violence.

— jim vertuno, star-telegram.com, "Lawsuit: Baylor football players recorded rapes, staged dog fights," 17 May 2017

First Known Use of haze

1801

haze

verb

Definition of haze

hazed; hazing

transitive verb

1 a :to harass by exacting unnecessary or disagreeable work

b :to harass by banter, ridicule, or criticism

2 :to haze by way of initiation

haze the fraternity pledges

3 Western US :to drive (animals, such as cattle or horses) from horseback

—

hazer

noun

Recent Examples of haze from the Web

Jeff Heuerman hazed rookie and former Wolverine Jake Butt with a new haircut.

— tim bielik, cleveland.com, "New upgrades might come to OSU's practice facility, crunching J.T. Barrett's numbers: Buckeye Breakfast," 23 Aug. 2017
Park officials now follow an action plan for aggressive goats that includes tracking interactions, closing areas where goats follow people, hazing goats and even killing some goats that are aggressive and unresponsive to hazing.

— evan bush, The Seattle Times, "Aggressive mountain goats in Olympic National Park: how to help decide their fate," 3 Aug. 2017
Confidence: Medium-High Tonight: Skies are increasingly clear and haze free.

— ian livingston, Washington Post, "D.C.-area forecast: Comparably temperate and tame through the weekend," 15 July 2017
Besides the incident at the party, three of the newest fraternity members were hazed, according to the accusations in the report.

— annie martin, OrlandoSentinel.com, "UCF fraternity suspended amid accusations of hazing, sexual misconduct," 26 June 2017
Cavallaro said at the start of winter Fish and Game employees had to haze some elk herds off private land before intensive feeding was underway.

— tom holm, idahostatesman, "Fish and Game will spend years rehabbing Tex Creek area to keep elk out of trouble," 5 June 2017
This year alone, Loyola University, the University of Central Florida and the University of Arizona have suspended fraternities after hazing allegations.

— CBS News, "Interfraternity CEO calls Penn State hazing death an "unacceptable reflection on humanity"," 24 May 2017
Most Popular A new federal lawsuit against Baylor University alleges football players routinely recorded gang rapes and staged dog fights during hazing parties in a program that fostered sexual violence.

— jim vertuno, Seventeen, "A New Lawsuit Alleges Baylor University Football Players Recorded Their Gang Rapes," 18 May 2017
A new federal lawsuit against Baylor University alleges football players routinely recorded gang rapes and staged dog fights during hazing parties in a program that fostered sexual violence.

— jim vertuno, star-telegram.com, "Lawsuit: Baylor football players recorded rapes, staged dog fights," 17 May 2017

Origin and Etymology of haze

origin unknown

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1840

See Words from the same year

HAZE Defined for English Language Learners

haze

play

noun

Definition of haze for English Language Learners

: dust, smoke, or mist that has filled the air so that you cannot see clearly
: a state of confusion

HAZE Defined for Kids

haze

play

noun \ ˈhāz \

Definition of haze for Students

:fine dust, smoke, or fine particles of water in the air

Learn More about haze

See words that rhyme with haze Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for haze Spanish Central: Translation of haze Nglish: Translation of haze for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of haze for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about haze

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Other Climate/Meteorology Terms

haze

Definition of haze

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First Known Use of haze

haze

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hazer

Recent Examples of haze from the Web

Origin and Etymology of haze

HAZE Defined for English Language Learners

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HAZE Defined for Kids

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