I. ˈblīnd adjective
( usually -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German blint blind, Old Norse blindr, Gothic blinds blind, Old English blandan to mix — more at blend
1.
a. : lacking the sense of sight by natural defect or by deprivation
b. : not having an eye or having an eye that does not see
that horse will shy if you come up on his blind side
c. : deficient in or lacking a physical sense other than sight — usually with a qualifying term
taste- blind
d. : for sightless persons
blind care
blind home
2.
a. : not having the faculty of discernment : lacking in intellectual light : unable or unwilling to judge rationally
blind to his own defects
b. : unsupported by evidence or plausibility : not substantially based
blind faith
3.
a. : without regard to rational discrimination, guidance, or restriction
if they persist in such a blind choice they must suffer for it
b. of an impersonal force : lacking any directing or controlling consciousness
our fate is in the hands of blind chance
c. : marked by complete insensibility
lying helpless in a blind stupor
especially : drunken to the point of insensibility : dead-drunk
4. : made or done without sight of objects or knowledge of facts comprising the chief or usual means of guidance or judgment
a blind purchase
as
a. : performed solely by the aid of data given by instruments within an airplane and without direct sight of landmarks
a blind landing
blind flying
b. in card games : made without seeing some relevant factor (as one's own hand or the dummy)
a blind lead
c. : made or done from psychological test data without reference to other case material
blind analysis
blind interpretation
5. : defective , incomplete , abortive :
a. of plants or plant parts
(1) : suppressed
(2) : lacking a growing point
(3) : failing to produce flowers or seeds — used especially of buds and bulbs
b. music : having alternate tones in different registers
a blind trill
a blind octave series
c. : incapable of producing a print — used of a lithographic surface
the plate went blind after 10,000 impressions
6.
a. archaic : lacking in light or brightness : dark
the little blind bedchamber — Samuel Pepys
b. obsolete : unlighted
a blind candle
also : having its light concealed
a blind lantern
c. : dull : lacking in brightness or luster ; especially : not polished or brought to a high gloss : finished dull
a mellow blind finish to the paneling
d. : impressed or tooled without gilding, inking, or coloring
blind lettering
blind scoring
7. : difficult to discern, make out, or discover : hard to locate or identify : obscure , hidden : as
a. archaic : out of the way ; also : secret
a blind meeting place
b. archaic , of a track or way : dim and ill-defined ; also : not easily followed or traced : involved , intricate
the blind mazes of this tangled wood — John Milton
c.
(1) of writing : illegible ; especially of mail : lacking a complete or legible address
(2) : concerned with the handling of blind mail
d. of the sense of a passage : unintelligible or uncertainly determinable
e. of material objects : constructed or arranged so as to be hidden from sight : covered
a blind veneer
blind seams in a shoe
as
(1) of a ditch or other water channel : consisting of a cut in the soil filled loosely with stones between which water can trickle or percolate
(2) of minerals and lodes and strata : not appearing in an outcrop at the surface
a blind vain
(3) of roads, driveways, and crossings : screened from the view of oncoming drivers or engineers
a blind crossroad
8.
a. : having but one opening or outlet : closed at one end : not permitting passage or flow all the way through
a blind alley
blind sockets
the blind gut
b. of a rivet or other fastener : designed to be inserted and made fast from one side
c. geology : terminating abruptly where it might be expected to continue
a blind joint in rocks
a blind valley that ends downstream where drainage disappears underground
9. : having no opening for light or passage : blank
a blind wall
as
a. of a hedge : too thick to see through or pass through
b. of a structural member : made without an opening but like a member that normally has an opening
a blind arch
a blind window over the stairs
10. railroading : turned edgewise — used of a target or of its position
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English blinden, from blind, adjective
1. : to make blind:
a. : to deprive of the sense of sight
his right eye was blinded when he was a child
b. : to deprive of insight or understanding
prejudice usually blinds judgment
c. : deceive , fool , bedazzle
d. : to deprive temporarily or partially of vision : make seeing difficult for or painful to : dazzle
the hot glare blinded her as she stepped into the street
2.
a. : to withhold light from : darken
shrubbery blinding all their windows
b. : hide , conceal
c. : to make dim by comparison : outshine , eclipse
torches that blind the candles
d. : to render nonlustrous : dull
a synthetic fabric may need to be blinded in the finishing process
3. : to fill the interstices of : clog: as
a. : to cover (a newly paved road) with a coating of sand and gravel in order that joints may be filled
b. : to cover (drain tiles) with earth while the trench is being filled
4. : to stamp (as a book cover) without gilding or coloring — often used with in
5. : to protect with blindages or with blinds
III. noun
( -s )
1. : something to hinder sight or keep out light: as
a. : a screen used to deflect or redirect light or to restrict observation from without: as
(1) : window shutter
(2) : a roller window shade
(3) : venetian blind
(4) chiefly Britain : awning
(5) : brise-soleil
(6) : a shutter for a porthole
b. : blinder
c. : a cloth covering for the eyes used especially in games
2. : a place or means of concealment : ambush 1 ; especially : a concealing enclosure from which a person may shoot game or observe wildlife
3.
a. : something put forward to screen or cover another object or design : subterfuge , deception
the holding company was a blind for out-of-state interests
his helpful offer is no more than a blind
b.
(1) : a person serving as an agent for another who keeps under cover
(2) : one who acts as a decoy or distraction
4. : hand tooling without gilding or coloring
bindings decorated in blind
5.
a. : blindage
b. : a strong frame of uprights and crosspieces used to support a blindage
6. card games
a. : an obligatory opening bet in some forms of draw poker made by the player at the dealer's left before the cards are dealt and often constituting a raise of the ante
b. : the player who makes this bet
c. : widow 3
7. railroading
a. : blind baggage
b. : the platform of a blind baggage immediately behind the tender — usually used in plural
8. slang Britain : a noisy usually drunken party : brawl
IV. adverb
Etymology: blind (I)
: blindly: as
a. : to the point of insensibility
blind drunk
b. : without the aid of visual or other indicators that are usually a source of guidance or judgment
learning to fly blind
c. : recklessly , heedlessly
I'd rather go it blind than not get home at all