The AI-powered English dictionary
comparative nearer, superlative nearest
Physically close. examples
Close in time. examples
Closely connected or related. quotations examples
she is thy fathers neere kinswoman.
1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], Leviticus 18:12
Close to one's interests, affection, etc.; intimate; dear. examples
Close to anything followed or imitated; not free, loose, or rambling. examples
So as barely to avoid or pass injury or loss; close; narrow. examples
Approximate, almost. examples
(Britain, in relation to a vehicle) On the side nearest to the kerb (the left-hand side if one drives on the left). examples
(dated) Next to the driver, when he is on foot; (US) on the left of an animal or a team. examples
(obsolete) Immediate; direct; close; short. quotations
Toward ſolid good what leads the neareſt way;
1673, John Milton, “[Sonnet] [Sonnet] XVII”, in Poems, &c. upon Several Occasions, London: […] Tho[mas] Dring […], page 61
(now rare) Stingy; parsimonious. quotations
[T]o let you know, Miss, he's so near, it's partly a wonder how he lives at all: and yet he's worth a power of money, too.
1782, [Frances Burney], chapter I, in Cecilia, or Memoirs of an Heiress. […], volume II, London: […] T[homas] Payne and Son […], and T[homas] Cadell […]
(programming, not comparable) Within the currently selected segment in a segmented memory architecture. examples
At or towards a position close in space or time. examples
Nearly; almost. quotations examples
[…] he hears for certain that the Queen-Mother is about and hath near finished a peace with France […]
1666, Samuel Pepys, Diary and Correspondence, published 1867
Sir John Friend had very near completed a regiment of horse.
1825, David Hume, Tobias George Smollett, The History of England, page 263
Peter ran after them as fast as his legs would carry him, but at last he had only one of the hares left, and when this was gone, he was very near burst with running.
1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 169
Thinking about those pounds and pence, I near forgot my wound.
2003, Owen Parry, Honor's Kingdom, page 365
"I damn near forgot." He pulled an envelope from his jacket.
2004, Jimmy Buffett, A Salty Piece of Land, page 315
The fire was almost dead, the chamber near dark.
2006, Juliet Marillier, The Dark Mirror, page 377
Physically close to, in close proximity to. quotations examples
He entered the inn, and asking for dinner, unbuckled his wallet, and sat down to rest himself near the door.
1820, Mary Shelley, Maurice
This time was most dreadful for Lilian. Thrown on her own resources and almost penniless, she maintained herself and paid the rent of a wretched room near the hospital by working as a charwoman, sempstress, anything.
1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XVII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company
It shied, balked, and whinnied, and in the end he could do nothing but drive it into the yard while the men used their own strength to get the heavy wagon near enough the hayloft for convenient pitching.
1927, H.P. Lovecraft, The Colour Out of Space
Most of the Himalayan rivers have been relatively untouched by dams near their sources. Now the two great Asian powers, India and China, are rushing to harness them as they cut through some of the world's deepest valleys.
2013 August 16, John Vidal, “Dams endanger ecology of Himalayas”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 10, page 8
Close to in time. examples
Close to in nature or degree. quotations examples
There was no way Brín felt anything anywhere near what I felt for him. He saw me as a friend.
2019, Emma Lea, A Royal Enticement
third-person singular simple present nears, present participle nearing, simple past and past participle neared
(transitive, intransitive) To come closer to; to approach. quotations examples
We started back in the same conditions, and for part of the journey ran through semi-darkness, but the sun appeared once again as we neared London.
1964 May, Cecil J. Allen, “Locomotive Running Past and Present”, in Modern Railways, pages 331–332
As he neared a bridge over the East Coast Main Line near Great Heck, he lost control. His Land Rover left the carriageway and veered onto the hard shoulder before biting into the grass verge.
2021 February 24, Greg Morse, “Great Heck: a tragic chain of events”, in RAIL, number 925, page 38
plural nears
The left side of a horse or of a team of horses pulling a carriage etc. examples