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verb

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective bare differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of bare are bald, barren, naked, and nude. While all these words 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

When might bald be a better fit than bare?

The synonyms bald and bare are sometimes interchangeable, but bald implies actual or seeming absence of natural covering and may suggest a conspicuous bareness.

a bald mountain peak

When is it sensible to use barren instead of bare?

The words barren and bare can be used in similar contexts, but barren often suggests aridity or impoverishment or sterility.

barren plains

In what contexts can naked take the place of bare?

While in some cases nearly identical to bare, naked suggests absence of protective or ornamental covering but may imply a state of nature, of destitution, or of defenselessness.

poor half-naked children

Where would nude be a reasonable alternative to bare?

While the synonyms nude and bare are close in meaning, nude applies especially to the unclothed human figure.

a nude model posing for art students

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bare
Adjective
House Republicans powered their first leg of this marathon across the line with the barest of majorities and zero margin for error. Philip Elliott, Time, 6 June 2025 The previously unreported writings lay bare Mangione’s plans to target the insurance industry. Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 5 June 2025
Verb
Kelly Ripa is baring it all with her tips for future empty nesters. Jay Stahl, USA Today, 27 May 2025 Sheer: The Art of the Almost Marjorie’s look proves that going sheer doesn’t have to mean baring it all. Karissa Mitchell, Essence, 26 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for bare
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bare
Adjective
  • In 1945, the mere prospect of an Israeli state inspired a boycott by every Arab one, in the name of the Palestinians.
    Karl Vick, Time, 19 June 2025
  • Israel’s incursion into southern Lebanon has revealed a military outpost about a mere 300 yards north of the border with the Jewish state that is filled with explosives and mines, according to Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
    Benjamin Weinthal, FOXNews.com, 19 June 2025
Adjective
  • While to some these screen-free devices may seem like a return to the early, simpler days of fitness trackers, Werring says the public is a bit more savvy than the step-counting obsessives of the 2010s.
    Andrew Williams, Forbes.com, 17 June 2025
  • In his formal lecture to the Academy, Campbell offered some reflections on the simple science that gave rise to the treatment, and to its wide array of applications.
    Benjamin Mazer, The Atlantic, 17 June 2025
Adjective
  • The west side of your house is more exposed, thus hotter than the east side.
    Tim Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 8 June 2025
  • Rifkin noticed some exposed brick in the back of the store.
    Robert Sullivan, New Yorker, 19 May 2025
Adjective
  • Uranus, Neptune and Saturn will also be in the sky, though the former two are impossible to see with the naked eye and the latter difficult.
    Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 21 June 2025
  • Most of them are still scary quick, skinny and now naked.
    Brian Truitt, USA Today, 20 June 2025
Adjective
  • Banking has become functionally correct but emotionally devoid, with the industry swimming in a sea of sameness.
    Michael Abbott, Forbes, 19 Mar. 2025
  • Delle, devoid for so long from its intrinsic need for social interaction might be filling in the gaps by talking to himself.
    Mack DeGeurin, Popular Science, 14 Feb. 2023
Verb
  • Months after Megan Fox welcomed a baby girl with rapper Machine Gun Kelly, their daughter's name has been revealed through a sweet video.
    Anna Halkidis, Parents, 17 June 2025
  • The Justice Department budget summary also revealed plans to shutter the agency's Community Relations Service and eliminate all 56 of the office's positions.
    June 17, CBS News, 17 June 2025
Adjective
  • The story itself is stripped to bone and sinew: a sleepy New England beach town that wants tourist dollars more than truth, an invisible killer in plain water, and three men — one scared sheriff, one cocky scientist, one Ahab of a fisherman — set adrift to settle nature’s score.
    Philip Martin, Arkansas Online, 19 June 2025
  • The smug and sanctimonious tenor of their briefing makes that plain.
    Christie D’Zurilla, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2025
Adjective
  • Taking time off and regaining your drive for the mission could be the difference between running on empty forever and coming back stronger.
    Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 13 June 2025
  • Normally bustling with tourists and downtown office workers, the historic food hall was nearly empty this week.
    Stephanie Breijo, Los Angeles Times, 13 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Bare.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bare. Accessed 28 Jun. 2025.

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