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blink

verb · noun

Simple meaning

To close and reopen both eyes quickly.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

blingk
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈblɪŋk

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. intransitive

    To close and reopen both eyes quickly.

  2. transitive

    To close and reopen one's eyes to remove (something) from on or around the eyes.

  3. To wink; to twinkle with, or as with, the eye.

  4. Briefly shut the eyes

    “The TV announcer never seems to blink.”

  5. To shine, especially with intermittent light; to twinkle; to flicker; to glimmer, as a lamp.

  6. To flash on and off at regular intervals.

noun

  1. The act of quickly closing both eyes and opening them again.

  2. figuratively

    The time needed to close and reopen one's eyes.

  3. A glimpse or glance.

  4. Alternative letter-case form of Blink.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency
Moderately Common
Typical Use
Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: To close and reopen both eyes quickly.

Used this way, blink is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use blink

  • “The TV announcer never seems to blink.”verb

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

eye blinkblink awayblink reflexblink rateblink backblink response

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

  • blinksnounPlural form

    Small Indian lettuce of northern regions.

  • blinkingnounInflected form

    A reflex that closes and opens the eyes rapidly.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • blink of an eyenounCompound term

    A very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat).

  • blinking chickweednounCompound term

    Small Indian lettuce of northern regions.

  • blink awayverbCompound term

    Keep back by blinking.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

verb

Sense: to close and reopen both eyes quickly

wink

noun

Sense: quickly closing both eyes and opening them again

eye blinkRare

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.