How does the adjective clear contrast with its synonyms?
Some common synonyms of clear are limpid, translucent, and transparent. While all these words mean "capable of being seen through," clear implies absence of cloudiness, haziness, or muddiness.
clear water
When could limpid be used to replace clear?
Although the words limpid and clear have much in common, limpid suggests the soft clearness of pure water.
her eyes were limpid pools of blue
When can translucent be used instead of clear?
The synonyms translucent and clear are sometimes interchangeable, but translucent implies the passage of light but not a clear view of what lies beyond.
translucent frosted glass
When would transparent be a good substitute for clear?
While the synonyms transparent and clear are close in meaning, transparent implies being so clear that objects can be seen distinctly.
a transparent sheet of film
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of clear
Adjective
His ball cut through the wind and sailed clear over the green into the water, leading to a triple bogey that ended his hopes.—Doug Ferguson, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2025 Avoiding nonessential travel and keeping roads clear helps the plows move more quickly.—Adam Tamburin, Axios, 18 Feb. 2025
Verb
The American was one-tenth clear at halfway, down to two-hundredths at 150m, and Tebogo beat him on the line.—Liam Tharme, New York Times, 28 June 2025 For night sky enthusiasts, the hot springs are from enough from Reykjavík to have only low levels of light pollution, and the night skies are clear enough for the northern lights in winter.—Zoe Baillargeon, Travel + Leisure, 28 June 2025
Adverb
Fill In The Hole Once cleared, fill the stump hole and any low areas with good-quality topsoil and organic matter, making sure to fill it well since the soil may settle over time.—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 27 June 2025 The Panthers put the usual matchup out for the McDavid line, the Barkov line, and when Carter Verhaeghe cleared the zone, Sam Reinhart headed for the Oilers blue line.—David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 18 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for clear
Consolidation by the end of the decade The future of other brands is less obvious, but consolidation among the mainstream brands is likely before the end of the decade.
—
Neil Winton,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
The harmful consequences to the economy and food supply is obvious.
—
Billal Rahman
Dan Gooding,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 June 2025
Companies can do this by involving employees in the AI design process, being transparent about capabilities, and training staff for new human-centric roles.
—
Moin Roberts-Islam,
Forbes.com,
30 June 2025
Jelly crab flats These jelly shoes should be transparent with a geometric pattern.
Students were required to undertake certain extracurricular activities (Prevost was in the choir with Franks—both sing tenor—and played tennis) and to keep up their academic performance, but mostly the school’s focus was how to live in community.
—
Belinda Luscombe,
Time,
1 July 2025
The findings revealed that certain personal factors influenced which recovery strategies people used.
First, as Paul points out, laboratory tests may not be conclusive or may appear normal, even when the patient is clearly experiencing abnormal symptoms.
—
Elizabeth Yuko,
Flow Space,
7 July 2025
Replay seemed to show LeMahieu getting in under Sánchez’s tag, but a lack of conclusive evidence led to the original call being upheld after a review.
—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
21 June 2025
That includes sparklers, which may look more innocent but can get up to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
4 July 2025
So far, the city's liability insurance carriers have agreed to pay nearly $27 million to settle four civil rights lawsuits alleging detectives — including some identified by multiple former officers as Wolverines — framed innocent people.
Attendees rode in support of and alongside community member Eva Zamora, who is a shining example of how to live your best life with Parkinson’s disease and takes cycle classes at EōS regularly, a news release stated.
—
News Release,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Apr. 2025
Her next shining moment comes when two young sisters enter the hospital.
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