1
: a smear or stain that obscures
2
: something vaguely or indistinctly perceived
The words are just a blur without his glasses.
The whole weekend is a blur to me.
especially
: something moving or occurring too quickly to be clearly seen
passed by in a blur of motion
blurred; blurring
1
: to obscure or blemish by smearing
windows blurred by fingerprints
2
: sully
… an act that blurs the grace and blush of modesty.—
Shakespeare
Shakespeare3
: to make dim, indistinct, or vague in outline or character
His vision was blurred.
digitally blur the edges of photographs
blurring the line between fact and fiction
4
: to make cloudy or confused
time had begun to blur her senses—W. A. White
W. A. White1
a
: to make blurs
… the moths tapped and blurred at the window screen …—R. P. Warren
R. P. Warren
b
: move too quickly to be seen clearly
… it's like the … ride of a traveling carnival, with eerie lights and sharp turns on the rails and the odd unsettling image that blurs past you.—Adrian McKinty
Adrian McKinty2
: to become vague or indistinct
distinctions between the two are beginning to blur
Examples of blur in a Sentence
Verb
The tears in my eyes blurred the words on the page.
His novel is based on historical occurrences but it blurs the line between fact and fiction.
The two events have blurred together in my mind.
Recent Examples on the Web
PCMAG, 12 Feb. 2025
When Sandy goes missing, the line between reality and game blurs and Conor must venture into the strange world of OBEX to bring her home.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 24 Jan. 2025
Jeff Conway, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
Drawn out over an almost one month period after the initial attack, the lines between fact and fiction blur pretty fast in Zero Day, just like in our echo chamber America.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for blur
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Noun
Nothing else changes, though; the optics carry over, so the lens renders the same sharp photos with characterful background blur as before.
—PCMAG, 12 Feb. 2025
When Sandy goes missing, the line between reality and game blurs and Conor must venture into the strange world of OBEX to bring her home.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 24 Jan. 2025
Verb
Created by Eric Newman, Noah Oppenheim and Michael S. Schmidt, Zero Day is a gripping, thought-provoking and all-too-timely six-part limited series about how a strategic cyberattack can affect our faith in national security, ignite a wide array of conspiracies and blur the perception of facts.
—Jeff Conway, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
Drawn out over an almost one month period after the initial attack, the lines between fact and fiction blur pretty fast in Zero Day, just like in our echo chamber America.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for blur
Cite this Entry
“Blur.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blur. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
blur
1 of 2 noun1
: a smear or stain that dims but does not completely cover
2
: something vague or lacking definite outline
blurry
adjective
-ē
blur
2 of 2 verb
blurred; blurring
1
: to make hard to see or read by smearing
2
: to make or become vague or unclear
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