Adjacent Words

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

NEAR, a. [This seems to be a contracted word, from nigher, the comparative of neh, nih or nieh; strait, narrow; to narrow]
1. Nigh; not far distant in place, time or degree. Regularly, near should be followed by to, but this is often omitted. We say, a house stands near a river; a friend sits near me; the man fell and was near destruction.
And Jacob went near to Isaac his father. Genesis 27.
Now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. Romans 13.
2. Closely related by blood.
She is thy fathers near kinswoman. Leviticus 18.
3. Not distant in affection, support or assistance; present; ready; willing to aid.
Call upon the Lord, while he is near. Isaiah 55.
4. Intimate; united in close ties of affection or confidence; as a near friend.
5. Dear; affecting ones interest or feelings; as a near concern.
My nearest life.
6. Close; parsimonious.
7. Close; not loose, free or rambling; as a version near the original.
8. Next to one; opposed to off; as the near horse or ox in a team.
NEAR, adv. Almost; within a little. It is near twelve oclock. The payment of such a sum would go near to ruin him.
NEAR, v.t. To approach; to come nearer; as, the ship neared the land; a seamans phrase.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: not far distant in time or space or degree or circumstances; "near neighbors"; "in the near future"; "they are near equals"; "his nearest approach to success"; "a very near thing"; "a near hit by the bomb"; "she was near tears"; "she was close to tears"; "had a close call" [syn: near, close, nigh] [ant: far]
2: being on the left side; "the near or nigh horse is the one on the left"; "the animal's left side is its near or nigh side" [syn: near, nigh]
3: closely resembling the genuine article; "near beer"; "a dress of near satin"
4: giving or spending with reluctance; "our cheeseparing administration"; "very close (or near) with his money"; "a penny-pinching miserly old man" [syn: cheeseparing, close, near, penny-pinching, skinny]
5: with or in a close or intimate relationship; "a good friend"; "my sisters and brothers are near and dear" [syn: dear, good, near]
6: very close in resemblance; "sketched in an approximate likeness"; "a near likeness" [syn: approximate, near] v
1: move towards; "We were approaching our destination"; "They are drawing near"; "The enemy army came nearer and nearer" [syn: approach, near, come on, go up, draw near, draw close, come near] adv
1: near in time or place or relationship; "as the wedding day drew near"; "stood near the door"; "don't shoot until they come near"; "getting near to the true explanation"; "her mother is always near"; "The end draws nigh"; "the bullet didn't come close"; "don't get too close to the fire" [syn: near, nigh, close]
2: (of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but; "the job is (just) about done"; "the baby was almost asleep when the alarm sounded"; "we're almost finished"; "the car all but ran her down"; "he nearly fainted"; "talked for nigh onto 2 hours"; "the recording is well-nigh perfect"; "virtually all the parties signed the contract"; "I was near exhausted by the run"; "most everyone agrees" [syn: about, almost, most, nearly, near, nigh, virtually, well-nigh]

Merriam Webster's

I. adverb Etymology: Middle English ner, partly from ner nearer, from Old English n?ar, comparative of n?ah nigh; partly from Old Norse nær nearer, comparative of n?- nigh — more at nigh Date: 13th century 1. at, within, or to a short distance or time <sunset was drawing near> 2. almost, nearly <was near dead> 3. in a close or intimate manner ; closely <near related> 4. archaic in a frugal manner II. preposition Date: 13th century close to <beaches near the city> <seemed to be near death> III. adjective Date: 14th century 1. a. not far distant in time, place, or degree <in the near future> b. almost happening ; narrowly missed or avoided <a near win in the primary> <a near midair collision> c. nearly not happening <a near escape> 2. closely related or intimately associated <her nearest and dearest friend> 3. a. being the closer of two <the near side> b. being the left-hand one of a pair <the near wheel of a cart> 4. direct, short <the nearest road> 5. stingy, closefisted 6. a. closely resembling the standard or typical <a near desert> b. approximating the genuine <near silk> • nearness noun IV. verb Date: 1513 approach

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adv., prep., adj., & v. --adv. 1 (often foll. by to) to or at a short distance in space or time; close by (the time drew near; dropped near to them). 2 closely (as near as one can guess). 3 archaic almost, nearly (very near died). 4 archaic parsimoniously; meanly (lives very near). --prep. (compar. & superl. also used) 1 to or at a short distance (in space, time, condition, or resemblance) from (stood near the back; occurs nearer the end; the sun is near setting). 2 (in comb.) a that is almost (near-hysterical; a near-Communist). b intended as a substitute for; resembling (near-beer). --adj. 1 (usu. predic.) close at hand; close to, in place or time (the man nearest you; in the near future). 2 a closely related (a near relation). b intimate (a near friend). 3 (of a part of a vehicle, animal, or road) left (the near fore leg; near side front wheel (orig. of the side from which one mounted)) (opp. OFF). 4 close; narrow (a near escape; a near guess). 5 (of a road or way) direct. 6 niggardly, mean. --v. 1 tr. approach; draw near to (neared the harbour). 2 intr. draw near (could distinguish them as they neared). Phrases and idioms: come (or go) near (foll. by verbal noun, or to + verbal noun) be on the point of, almost succeed in (came near to falling). go near (foll. by to + infin.) narrowly fail. near at hand 1 within easy reach. 2 in the immediate future. the Near East the region comprising the countries of the eastern Mediterranean. Near Eastern of the Near East. near go colloq. a narrow escape. near the knuckle colloq. verging on the indecent. near miss 1 (of a bomb etc.) close to the target. 2 a situation in which a collision is narrowly avoided. 3 (of an attempt) almost but not quite successful. near sight esp. US = short sight. near thing a narrow escape. near upon archaic not far in time from. Derivatives: nearish adj. nearness n. Etymology: ME f. ON nær, orig. compar. of ná = OE neah NIGH

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Near Near (n[=e]r), adv. [AS. ne['a]r, compar. of ne['a]h nigh. See Nigh.] 1. At a little distance, in place, time, manner, or degree; not remote; nigh. My wife! my traitress! let her not come near me. --Milton. 2. Nearly; almost; well-nigh. ``Near twenty years ago.'' --Shak. ``Near a fortnight ago.'' --Addison. Near about the yearly value of the land. --Locke. 3. Closely; intimately. --Shak. Far and near, at a distance and close by; throughout a whole region. To come near to, to want but little of; to approximate to. ``Such a sum he found would go near to ruin him.'' --Addison. Near the wind (Naut.), close to the wind; closehauled.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Near Near, prep. Adjacent to; close by; not far from; nigh; as, the ship sailed near the land. See the Note under near, a.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Near Near, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Neared; p. pr. & vb. n Nearing.] [See Near, adv.] To approach; to come nearer; as, the ship neared the land.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Near Near, a. [Compar. Nearer; superl. Nearest.] [See Near, adv.] 1. Not far distant in time, place, or degree; not remote; close at hand; adjacent; neighboring; nigh. ``As one near death.'' --Shak. He served great Hector, and was ever near, Not with his trumpet only, but his spear. --Dryden. 2. Closely connected or related. She is thy father's near kinswoman. --Lev. xviii. 12. 3. Close to one's interests, affection, etc.; touching, or affecting intimately; intimate; dear; as, a near friend. 4. Close to anything followed or imitated; not free, loose, or rambling; as, a version near to the original. 5. So as barely to avoid or pass injury or loss; close; narrow; as, a near escape. 6. Next to the driver, when he is on foot; in the Unted States, on the left of an animal or a team; as, the near ox; the near leg. See Off side, under Off, a. 7. Immediate; direct; close; short. ``The nearest way.'' --Milton. 8. Close-fisted; parsimonious. [Obs. or Low, Eng.] Note: Near may properly be followed by to before the thing approached'; but more frequently to is omitted, and the adjective or the adverb is regarded as a preposition. The same is also true of the word nigh. Syn: Nigh; close; adjacent; proximate; contiguous; present; ready; intimate; dear.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Near Near, v. i. To draw near; to approach. A speck, a mist, a shape, I wist! And still it neared, and neared. --Coleridge.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(nearer, nearest, nears, nearing, neared) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. If something is near a place, thing, or person, it is a short distance from them. Don't come near me... Her children went back every year to stay in a farmhouse near the cottage... He drew his chair nearer the fire... Some of the houses nearest the bridge were on fire. PREP • Near is also an adverb. He crouched as near to the door as he could... She took a step nearer to the barrier... As we drew near, I saw that the boot lid was up. ADV: ADV after v, be ADV, oft ADV to n • Near is also an adjective. He collapsed into the nearest chair... Where's the nearest telephone?... The nearer of the two barges was perhaps a mile away. ADJ: ADJ n, the ADJ of n • nearness He was suddenly aware of his nearness. N-UNCOUNT: usu with poss 2. If someone or something is near to a particular state, they have almost reached it. After the war, The House of Hardie came near to bankruptcy... The repairs to the Hafner machine were near to completion... Apart from anything else, he comes near to contradicting himself. = close PREP-PHRASE: PREP n/-ing • Near means the same as near to. He was near tears... We are no nearer agreement now than in the past. PREP 3. If something is similar to something else, you can say that it is near to it. ...a sickening sensation that was near to nausea. PREP-PHRASE • Near means the same as near to. Often her feelings were nearer hatred than love. PREP 4. You describe the thing most similar to something as the nearest thing to it when there is no example of the thing itself. It would appear that the legal profession is the nearest thing to a recession-proof industry... ADJ: the ADJ n to n, the ADJ to n 5. If a time or event draws near, it will happen soon. (WRITTEN) The time for my departure from Japan was drawing nearer every day. ADV: ADV after v, be ADV 6. If something happens near a particular time, it happens just before or just after that time. Performance is lowest between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m, and reaches a peak near midday... I'll tell you nearer the day. PREP 7. You use near to say that something is a little more or less than an amount or number stated. ...to increase manufacturing from about 2.5 million cars a year to nearer 4.75 million... PREP 8. You can say that someone will not go near a person or thing when you are emphasizing that they refuse to see them or go there. He will absolutely not go near a hospital... I'm so annoyed with her that I haven't been near her for a week. PREP: with brd-neg [emphasis] 9. The near one of two things is the one that is closer. ...a mighty beech tree on the near side of the little clearing... Jane put one foot in the near stirrup and turned to look at the stranger. ? far ADJ: det ADJ n 10. You use near to indicate that something is almost the thing mentioned. She was believed to have died in near poverty on the French Riviera. ...the 48-year-old who was brought in to rescue the bank from near collapse. ADJ: ADJ n • Near is also an adverb. ...his near fatal accident two years ago... ADV: ADV adj 11. In a contest, your nearest rival or challenger is the person or team that is most likely to defeat you. That victory put the Ukrainians beyond the reach of their nearest challengers, Dynamo Moscow. ADJ: ADJ n 12. When you near a place, you get quite near to it. (LITERARY) As he neared the stable, he slowed the horse and patted it on the neck... VERB: no passive, V n 13. When someone or something nears a particular stage or point, they will soon reach that stage or point. His age was hard to guess–he must have been nearing fifty... The project is taking a long time but is now nearing completion. = approach VERB: no passive, V n, V n 14. You say that an important time or event nears when it is going to occur quite soon. (LITERARY) As half time neared, Hardyman almost scored twice... = approach VERB: V 15. People sometimes refer to their close relatives and friends as their nearest and dearest. ...that English convention of not showing your feelings, even to your nearest and dearest. = kith and kin PHRASE 16. You use near and far to indicate that you are referring to a very large area or distance. People would gather from near and far... PHRASE 17. If you say that something will happen in the near future, you mean that it will happen quite soon. The controversy regarding vitamin C is unlikely to be resolved in the near future. PHRASE 18. You use nowhere near and not anywhere near to emphasize that something is not the case. They are nowhere near good enough... It was nowhere near as painful as David had expected... PHRASE: usu PHR adj, PHR n [emphasis]

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. a. 1. Nigh, close, neighboring, adjacent, contiguous, proximate, adjoining, bordering upon, approximate to, close upon, close by, hard upon, close at hand. 2. Imminent, impending, forthcoming, approaching, threatening, at hand, about to happen, going to happen. 3. Intimate, dear, familiar, closely allied, closely attached. 4. Direct, short, straight, immediate, close. 5. Close, literal, accurate. 6. Close, narrow. 7. Left. 8. Close, narrow, niggardly, parsimonious, close-fisted. 9. Closely related, allied by blood. 10. Present, ready. II. ad. Nearly, closely, within a little of, almost, well-nigh. III. prep. Nigh, close to, close by, not far from. IV. v. n. Approach, come nearer. V. v. a. Approach, draw near.

Moby Thesaurus

about, about to be, abutting, accost, adjacent, adjoining, advance, advancing, all but, almost, along toward, already in sight, among, angustifoliate, angustirostrate, angustisellate, angustiseptal, anticipate, ape, appear like, approach, approaching, appropinquate, approximate, approximating, approximative, arm-in-arm, around, as good as, aside, at, at close quarters, at hand, at next hand, attached, attracted to, avaricious, await, be destined, be fated, be imminent, be in store, be like, be redolent of, be to be, be to come, bear down on, bear down upon, bear resemblance, bear up, beside, bordering on, brew, brewing, bring to mind, burning, by, call to mind, call up, cheap, cheek-by-jowl, circa, circumscribed, close, close about, close at hand, close by, close in, close to, close upon, close with, close-by, close-fitting, closefisted, closely, come, come close, come closer, come forward, come near, come on, come up, coming, comparable, compare with, confined, confront, connected, constricted, contiguous, converge, copy, correspond, counterclockwise, counterfeit, cramp, cramped, crowded, draw near, draw nigh, draw on, drawn to, encounter, equal, evoke, expect, face, familiar, fast by, favor, follow, foresee, foretell, forthcome, forthcoming, from, future, gain upon, gather, gathering, going to happen, hairbreadth, hand and glove, hand-in-hand, hang over, hard, hard by, hard on, hardfisted, hereabout, hereabouts, homologous, hope, hot, hover, illiberal, imitate, immediate, imminent, impend, impendent, impending, in, in danger imminent, in prospect, in reserve, in spitting distance, in store, in the cards, in the offing, in the wind, in view, incapacious, incommodious, inseparable, instant, intimate, isthmian, isthmic, just about, larboard, lean towards, left, left-hand, left-wing, left-wingish, levorotatory, liberal, lie ahead, lie over, like, limited, look for, look forward to, look like, loom, looming, lower, lowering, lurking, match, meager, mean, menace, menacing, mimic, mirror, miserly, much at one, much the same, narrow, narrow the gap, near at hand, near the mark, near to, near upon, nearabout, nearabouts, nearby, nearing, nearish, nearly, nearly reproduce, nearly the same, next door to, next to, niggardly, nigh, nigh about, nighhand, nighish, not far, not far from, not quite, not tell apart, on, on the horizon, oncoming, only a step, overhang, overhanging, parallel, parsimonious, partake of, penny-pinching, penurious, pinchfisted, pinching, plan, plot, port, predict, preparing, pretty near, project, prophesy, propinque, proximal, proximate, quasi, radical, relatable, related, relative, remind one of, resemble, restricted, rival, round, same but different, save-all, savor of, scant, scanty, seem like, selfish, side-by-side, sidle up to, similar, simulate, sinister, sinistral, sinistrocerebral, sinistrocular, sinistrogyrate, sinistrorse, slender, smack of, sound like, stack up with, step up, stingy, strait, suggest, take after, that will be, thereabout, thereabouts, thick, thick as thieves, threaten, threatening, tight, tight-fisted, tightfisted, to, to come, touch, toward, ungenerous, upcoming, verge on, verging on, verging upon, vicinal, virtually, waiting, warm, well-nigh, with, within call, within earshot, within hearing, within reach, within sight