blur

1 of 2

noun

1
: a smear or stain that obscures
2
: something vaguely or indistinctly perceived
The words are just a blur without his glasses.
The whole weekend is a blur to me.
especially : something moving or occurring too quickly to be clearly seen
passed by in a blur of motion

blur

2 of 2

verb

blurred; blurring

transitive verb

1
: to obscure or blemish by smearing
windows blurred by fingerprints
2
: sully
… an act that blurs the grace and blush of modesty.Shakespeare
3
: to make dim, indistinct, or vague in outline or character
His vision was blurred.
digitally blur the edges of photographs
blurring the line between fact and fiction
4
: to make cloudy or confused
time had begun to blur her sensesW. A. White

intransitive verb

1
a
: to make blurs
… the moths tapped and blurred at the window screen …R. P. Warren
b
: move too quickly to be seen clearly
… it's like the … ride of a traveling carnival, with eerie lights and sharp turns on the rails and the odd unsettling image that blurs past you.Adrian McKinty
2
: to become vague or indistinct
distinctions between the two are beginning to blur
blurringly adverb

Examples of blur in a Sentence

Verb The tears in my eyes blurred the words on the page. His novel is based on historical occurrences but it blurs the line between fact and fiction. The two events have blurred together in my mind.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
These interactions occur on two interrelated dimensions: Business ecosystems: As technology disruption blurs industry and supply chain boundaries, lower transaction costs boost leading companies’ ability to participate in business ecosystems. Mohamed Kande and Lang Davidson Of Pwc, Quartz, 8 Mar. 2024 The blur of numbers, no matter how sliced or diced, underscore where San Diego State is most vulnerable as win-or-go-home games arrive. Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Mar. 2024 The result is that pixels are transitioned from one color to another at a rate that reduces motion blur and pixel ghosting. Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 9 Jan. 2024 Toil and trouble boil over in this timeless tale of mayhem and madness, reimagined for today, where the lines between reality and the supernatural blur. David Catlin, The Enquirer, 6 Mar. 2024 The moment of ambush amidst a blur of evasion, this action photo captures high-speed hunting of sardines by mahi mahi fish. Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024 Her most personal album yet documents the life cycle of a relationship, from the wooziness of infatuation to the blur of heartbreak, and finds self-love at the end of the rainbow. Chris Kelly, Washington Post, 15 Feb. 2024 Jaws were rattled time and again as the punches kept coming in a dizzying blur. Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Feb. 2024 Latin Mercado, a heady blur of live cooking stations and bountiful buffets. Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 12 Feb. 2024
Verb
That’s because Amy Herzog’s new version of the text, and this in-the-round staging by her husband Sam Gold, was already aiming to blur distinctions between past and present. Naveen Kumar, Washington Post, 19 Mar. 2024 This digital boundary cuts the zipper on Kate’s jacket in two and blurs the bottom half. Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2024 Carrier names and tail numbers are blurred or absent in the videos, consistent with tail-number redactions in documents the Washington human rights center has gradually received from ICE in the years after its 2019 reports. Mckenzie Funk, ProPublica, 8 Mar. 2024 Phase shifts, Govind says, can blur signals, greatly limiting the data rates of wireless networks. IEEE Spectrum, 8 Mar. 2024 Two names are currently blurred out on the lineup poster, indicating more artists to be revealed. Katie Bain, Billboard, 5 Mar. 2024 Working from home during the pandemic blurred the lines between work and her personal life, exacerbating a years-long feeling of burnout. Samantha Masunaga, Los Angeles Times, 4 Mar. 2024 The boundaries between work and personal life have become increasingly blurred. Julian Hayes Ii, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 The streaming giant inked a 10-year deal with the WWE valued at more than $5 billion in January, but executives noted at the time that the WWE blurs the line between sports and entertainment. Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'blur.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

perhaps akin to Middle English bleren to blear

First Known Use

Noun

1519, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1520, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of blur was in 1519

Dictionary Entries Near blur

Cite this Entry

“Blur.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blur. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

blur

1 of 2 noun
1
: a smear or stain that dims but does not completely cover
2
: something vague or lacking definite outline
blurry
adjective

blur

2 of 2 verb
blurred; blurring
1
: to make hard to see or read by smearing
2
: to make or become vague or unclear

More from Merriam-Webster on blur

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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