blurred

blurred — adjective

1. not easy to make out because the edges or details do not stand out clearly.

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

not easy to make out because the edges or details do not stand out clearly.

Example

The mountain looked blurred through the wet bus window.

pattern: look blurred through [surface]

A blurred photo of the dog hung on Noa's fridge.

collocation: blurred photo

Common collocations
  • blurred photo
  • blurred image
  • blurred outline
  • blurred background
Synonyms
  • blurry

    more everyday, especially for photos or screens

  • hazy

    often suggests mist, smoke, or weak focus

  • indistinct

    more formal and common in careful description

Antonyms
  • sharp

    showing clear detail

  • clear

    easy to see without confusion

  • focused

    showing correct visual focus

Grammar Patterns

blurred photo

blurred image

look blurred

be blurred

Usage Note

Often used for pictures, outlines, or things seen through rain, glass, or movement.

2. not clearly separated in your mind, so a memory, meaning, or difference is hard

2.adjectiveC1
Definition

not clearly separated in your mind, so a memory, meaning, or difference is hard to tell apart.

Example

After the crash, details of the morning were blurred in Omar's mind.

pattern: details were blurred in [person]'s mind

In the small office, the boundary between sales and support became blurred.

Common collocations
  • blurred memory
  • blurred line
  • blurred boundary
  • blurred distinction
Synonyms
  • vague

    stresses lack of exact shape or meaning

  • unclear

    the broad everyday choice

  • confused

    stronger; suggests mixed or disordered ideas

Antonyms
  • distinct

    clearly separate from something else

  • clear-cut

    showing a firm and easy distinction

Grammar Patterns

blurred memory

blurred line between A and B

become blurred

blurred together

Usage Note

Often used with nouns like 'line', 'boundary', 'difference', or 'memory'. Distinguish from sense 1, which is about what the eyes see, and sense 3, which is about the viewer's sight.

Common Mistakes

The answer was blurred, so I asked again.
The answer was unclear, so I asked again.
this sense fits memories, boundaries, and differences more naturally than a direct reply.

3. describing sight that is not focused well enough for you to see things plainly.

3.adjectiveB2
Definition

describing sight that is not focused well enough for you to see things plainly.

Example

After the eyedrops, Ravi's vision stayed blurred for an hour.

collocation: vision stayed blurred

Leila stopped driving because everything beyond the lights looked blurred.

pattern: everything looked blurred

Common collocations
  • blurred vision
  • blurred sight
  • everything looked blurred
  • vision was blurred
Synonyms
  • unfocused

    stresses that the eyes are not seeing sharply

  • misty

    often used when sight seems covered by tears or illness

  • out of focus

    common phrase for sight that is not sharp

Antonyms
  • clear

    easy to see sharply

  • sharp

    showing fine detail clearly

Grammar Patterns

vision is blurred

everything looks blurred

sight becomes blurred

Usage Note

Most often used with 'vision', 'sight', or 'everything'. Distinguish from sense 1: here the problem is your eyesight, not the object itself.

Common Mistakes

My eyes are blurred today.
My vision is blurred today.
English usually describes the sight or vision, not the eyes themselves.

Word family

  • blur
    verbB2
  • blur
    nounC1
  • blurry
    adjectiveB2
  • blurriness
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Blurred and blurry are close, but blurry is more everyday for photos, screens, and faces. Blurred often sounds a little more result-focused: something became unclear because of motion, rain, tears, or weak focus. Fuzzy can describe unclear edges too, but it often suggests softness rather than simple loss of detail, and it can also describe ideas. Hazy is common for air full of smoke or mist, and for memories that are hard to recall exactly. Indistinct is the most formal choice and appears more in careful writing than daily speech. Say a blurred photo when the camera missed sharp detail, but a hazy memory when the past is hard to recall clearly.

blurryfuzzy ↗hazyindistinct

Common collocations

Adverbs

  • slightly blurred
  • badly blurred
  • deliberately blurred

Phrases

  • become blurred
  • remain blurred
  • look blurred
  • seem blurred

Etymology

English

Blurred is the past-participle adjective from blur. English has used blur since the 1500s for making something less clear to the eye or mind. The deeper origin of blur is uncertain. The adjective blurred keeps that same idea of lost sharpness, whether the problem is in a picture, a memory, or someone's sight.