/ nɪə(r); NAmE nɪr/ adjective , adverb , preposition , verb
■ adjective ( near·er , near·est )
HELP NOTE : In senses 1 to 4 near and nearer do not usually go before a noun; nearest can go either before or after a noun.
1.
a short distance away
SYN close :
His house is very near.
Where's the nearest bank?
➡ note at next
2.
a short time away in the future :
The conflict is unlikely to be resolved in the near future (= very soon) .
3.
coming next after sb/sth :
She has a 12-point lead over her nearest rival.
4.
(usually nearest ) similar; most similar :
He was the nearest thing to (= the person most like) a father she had ever had.
—see also o.n.o.
5.
[ only before noun ] (no comparative or superlative) close to being sb/sth :
The election proved to be a near disaster for the party.
a near impossibility
6.
near relative / relation used to describe a close family connection :
Only the nearest relatives were present at the funeral.
► near·ness noun [ U ]:
the nearness of death
•
IDIOMS
- your nearest and dearest
- a near thing
- to the nearest ...
■ adverb ( near·er , near·est )
1.
at a short distance away :
A bomb exploded somewhere near.
She took a step nearer.
Visitors came from near and far .
2.
a short time away in the future :
The exams are drawing near .
3.
(especially in compounds) almost :
a near-perfect performance
I'm as near certain as can be.
•
IDIOMS
- as near as
- as near as damn it / dammit
- near enough
- not anywhere near / nowhere near
- so near and yet so far
—more at pretty adverb
■ preposition (also near to , near·er (to) , near·est (to) )
HELP NOTE : Near to is not usually used before the name of a place, person, festival, etc.
1.
at a short distance away from sb/sth :
Do you live near here?
Go and sit nearer (to) the fire.
➡ note at next
2.
a short period of time from sth :
My birthday is very near Christmas.
I'll think about it nearer (to) the time (= when it is just going to happen) .
3.
used before a number to mean 'approximately', 'just below or above' :
Share prices are near their record high of last year.
Profits fell from $11 million to nearer $8 million.
4.
similar to sb/sth in quality, size, etc. :
Nobody else comes near her in intellect.
He's nearer 70 than 60.
This colour is nearest (to) the original.
5.
~ (doing) sth close to a particular state :
a state near (to) death
She was near to tears (= almost crying) .
We came near to being killed.
•
IDIOMS
see hand noun , heart , mark noun
■ verb
(rather formal ) to come close to sth in time or space
SYN approach :
[ vn ]
The project is nearing completion .
She was nearing the end of her life.
We neared the top of the hill.
[ v ]
As Christmas neared, the children became more and more excited.
••
WHICH WORD
near / close
The adjectives near and close are often the same in meaning, but in some phrases only one of them may be used:
the near future
•
a near neighbour
•
a near miss
•
a close contest
•
a close encounter
•
a close call
. Close is more often used to describe a relationship between people:
a close friend
•
close family
•
close links
. You do not usually use near in this way.
••
WORD ORIGIN
Middle English : from Old Norse nær nearer, comparative of ná , corresponding to Old English nēah nigh .