bare 1
— barish , adj. — bareness , n.
/bair/ , adj., barer, barest , v.t., bared, baring .
adj.
1. without covering or clothing; naked; nude: bare legs.
2. without the usual furnishings, contents, etc.: bare walls.
3. open to view; unconcealed; undisguised: his bare dislike of neckties.
4. unadorned; bald; plain: the bare facts.
5. (of cloth) napless or threadbare.
6. scarcely or just sufficient; mere: the bare necessities of life.
7. Obs. with the head uncovered; bareheaded.
v.t.
8. to open to view; reveal or divulge: to bare one's arms; to bare damaging new facts.
[ bef. 900; ME; OE baer; c. OFris ber, D baar, OS, OHG, G bar, ON berr, Lith bãsas barefoot, Russ bos; akin to Armenian bok naked ]
Syn. 1. undressed. 2. plain, stark, empty, barren. BARE, STARK, BARREN share the sense of lack or absence of something that might be expected. BARE, the least powerful in connotation of the three, means lack of expected or usual coverings, furnishings, or embellishments: bare floor, feet, head. STARK implies extreme severity or desolation and resultant bleakness or dreariness: a stark landscape; a stark, emotionless countenance. BARREN carries a strong sense of sterility and oppressive dullness: barren fields; a barren relationship. 6. See mere 1 . 8. uncover, expose.
Ant. 1. covered.
bare 2
/bair/ , v. Archaic.
pt. of bear .