- Main Entry:
- 1bare
- Pronunciation:
-
\ˈber\
- Function:
- adjective
- Inflected Form(s):
- bar·er; bar·est
- Etymology:
- Middle English, from Old English bær; akin to Old High German bar naked, Lithuanian basas barefoot
- Date:
- before 12th century
1 a: lacking a natural, usual, or appropriate covering b (1): lacking clothing <bare feet> (2)obsolete : bareheaded c: lacking any tool or weapon <opened the box with his bare hands>2: open to view : exposed <laying bare their secrets>3 a: unfurnished or scantily supplied <a bare room> b: destitute <bare of all safeguards>4 a: having nothing left over or added <the bare necessities of life> b: mere <a bare two hours away> c: devoid of amplification or adornment <the bare facts>5obsolete : worthless
— bare·ness noun
synonyms bare,
naked,
nude,
bald,
barren mean deprived of naturally or conventionally appropriate covering.
bare implies the removal of what is additional, superfluous, ornamental, or dispensable
<an apartment with bare walls>.
naked suggests absence of protective or ornamental covering but may imply a state of nature, of destitution, or of defenselessness
<poor half-naked children>.
nude applies especially to the unclothed human figure
<a nude model posing for art students>.
bald implies actual or seeming absence of natural covering and may suggest a conspicuous bareness
<a bald mountain peak>.
barren often suggests aridity or impoverishment or sterility
<barren plains>.
