ˈblīnnə̇s noun
( -es )
Etymology: Middle English, from blind (I) + -ness
1. : want of discernment especially with reference to some particular object or matter : failure to exercise understanding, judgment, or discrimination
2.
a. : the quality or state of being blind ; specifically : that of having less than 1/10 of normal vision in the more efficient eye when refractive defects are fully corrected by suitable lenses — compare color blindness
b. : psychic inability to perceive visual images although the visual receptors are functional — called also mental blindness, mind blindness, psychic blindness
c. : lack of sensory perception involving all or part of some sense other than sight
taste blindness
smell blindness
3.
a. obsolete : concealment
b. : obscurity
4. of plants : failure to produce a growing tip or flowers or to develop vegetative parts — compare blind I 5a